Scars and Holidays
by Tecumseh Dean
Summary: Charlie Weasley is home for the holidays - a month of his mother's nagging and siblings' shenanigans. But when they introduce him to Ginny's Healer-mentor, will they try to set-up him or let him work his own, natural charm? CW/OC, FW/Hr, R/L AU obvi
1. I

Mira opened her eyes; there was a sliver of sun peeking through the curtains

Charlie looked out the window of his cabin across the snow-covered reserve and sighed. Last night had been the biggest snow of the season - so far. Six feet in the middle of December wasn't bad for Romania, but he really did hate training dragons in the snow. He glanced down at the letter lying on his table. The letter his mother had sent him only days earlier. She knew he had a ton of vacation days that he hadn't used and so expected him home for a month. He sighed again. A month of his mother's nagging about his career, his lack of girlfriend…

And that month started today.

He sighed. Like all the Weasley children, he loved his mother, but, like all the Weasley children, he tired easily from her constant worrying, constant chiding about their lives. At least all his siblings were being forced to come home too, though not for an entire month…

At least everyone, even Bill leaved nearby and he could visit them as soon as his mother was on his case again…

There was a knock on the cabin door. Pushing himself out of his chair and pulling his coat tighter to him, he opened the door. "Smitty!" He shook the man's hand, pulling him in from the snow. "You sure you don't want to come to wonderful, sunny ol' England to meet the rest of the Weasley clan?"

"You know I'd love to meet the rest of you Weasleys, but I already used all my vacation days except to visit my own family."

"Fine, fine," Charlie waved his hands, laughing, "I see how it is! I should head out soon anyway. Smitty, I'll see you in a month. If I'm not back in exactly one month, send a dragon to help claw my mother's hands off me."

Smitty laughed as Charlie stuck his shrunken bags in his coat pockets and Disapparated with a Pop!

The sky was still grey when Charlie Apparated outside the Burrow. Flicking his wan quickly, he cleared a path through the few feet of snow to the backdoor. He walked in quietly - it was so early his parents weren't even awake. Yawning, he decided to go back to sleep for a while. He walked as quietly as he could up the stairs into his room and slipping his boots off, plopped onto his bed, falling asleep instantly.

--

The bell of Weasleys' Wizards Wheezes tinkled as a girl hurried in, stamping the snow off her boots and loosening her bright blue scarf from around her neck. "I know, I know, I'm early!" She smiled as George walked out from the back room.

"About two hours earlier, my dear…I know you adore our company, but…"

"Hush, Boss-Man. I told you I had to leave a little early-"

"-for a lecture on some Magical disease or what not."

She smirked, "So glad you were paying so close attention."

"Is she yapping on again about wanting to be the youngest Healer or something?" Fred shouted from his office.

"Oh, boys, you know I'm already one of the youngest licensed Healers, and no, this lecture is mandatory."

"Fine, fine, skim off work, Leah dear, but next time I need to get treated at St. Mungo's, it better be for free."

"Yes, of course, Freddie-poo, but won't Ginny get you free medical care anyway?" She smiled and hung her grey pea coat and bright blue scarf, mittens and hat behind the counter.

"Merlin, those things are bright. Must you ruin our store's image by waving around your Ravenclaw pride?"

Leah snorted, "So says that man wearing the magenta robes."

George rolled his eyes as Leah ran her hands through her hair quickly, "Acceptable?"

"The children shouldn't be frightened, no."

"So loving, thanks."

Leah immediately began to flip through the store's books as she did at the beginning of each of her shifts.

"You're still coming for Christmas, right my dear?"

Leah looked up and smiled, "I don't think I've ever been more excited for a Christmas."

George grinned, "The Weasley's never disappoint, love!"

He returned to the back room leaving Leah to deal with the customers and the store's books.

Leah Bartley worked at WWW part-time almost as soon as it had opened. She and Verity were the first employees after the owners themselves. She only worked part-time, mostly helping with the books and re-stocking so she could afford her flat and other expenses during Healer-training. She had gotten her Healer license within a year, one of the very few wizards to have ever achieved. Even though she didn't need to necessarily keep working at WWW, she found that she loved working there as it was a break from Healing, and she really enjoyed her bosses. When Ginny had begun her Healer-training, she had taken the youngest Weasley under her wing, giving her extra advice, tutoring, and guidance. Her working relationships with the Weasley twins and Ginny had put her in the highest regards of Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and was thus invited to spend Christmas at the Burrow. She was delighted since she had spent Christmas these past few years getting drunk by herself. And her Christmases from her childhood were no better since she had grown up living with her alcoholic uncle - those Christmases were usually spent by herself at Hogwarts. She couldn't be happier to spend Christmas with a real family.

Ginny wandered into the store two hours later with her boyfriend, Harry Potter, in tow.

"Ginny! Harry! What a surprise!" Leah greeted them enthusiastically. "Shall I ring the bosses?"

Ginny smiled, "That's all right, we'll see them later, I just wanted to thank you for introducing me to Healer Lang."

Leah waved her hand, "Please, I didn't even realize what big a favor I was doing for you!"

Ginny grinned, "This is why I love you, Leah dear."

"Even I can't influence her career advancement that much," Harry quipped.

Leah smiled, "I'm glad I could help, although I don't know how much it really will. But how could I not try and help my little protégé?" She pinched Ginny's cheeks playfully.

Ginny rolled her eyes, "Thanks again though, really," she and Harry turned to leave but remembered something. "You're coming for the Holidays, right?"

"Yea!"

"Perfect! In case George and Fred forget to tell you, which they will, we're having a big family dinner Friday night."

"Oh, Ginny, it's a family dinner, please, I don't want to intrude any more than I already am."

Ginny tapped her foot impatiently, "Harry, tell her."

Harry rolled his eyes and smiled, "Hermione, Luna, Mira and I are going, and you have to too. It's sort of like a prelude to Christmas. Trust me, Mrs. Weasley will be devasted if you don't come."

Leah nodded, "Fine, fine, fine, but" she looked at her watch, "oh, Merlin I have to leave or I'll be late for my lecture!" She put her scarf and hat on hurriedly and shouted "Bye, Boss-Man, see you tomorrow!" Kissed Ginny on the cheek, grinned at Harry and rushed out the front door.

--

Charlie woke up a few hours later to the sounds of his mother making lunch. He had completely slept through breakfast. Rubbing his eyes, he yawned and changed his clothes and quietly walked down stairs, wanting to surprise his mother. He heard her muttering to herself as she stirred her soup. He snuck up behind her and said loudly, "What a fine day for degnoming!"

She threw her spoon up in the air and turned around quickly, her wand at the ready and pointed directly at Charlie's throat.

"Well, mother, what a fine way to welcome home your son for the holidays!"

"Merlin Charlie, you gave me such a fright!" She reached up and pulled him into one of her signature rib-breaking hugs. "When did you get here?"

"Early this morning, so I decided to sleep in a few extra hours. I knew you'd feed me no matter when I woke up."

Mrs. Weasley smiled, "Course I would, dear!" She continued to make her soup, asking Charlie only a few questions about the reserve and life in general, and as suspicious as he was, he was glad she wasn't being extremely intrusive. Maybe Bill had finally gotten through to her. They ate their soup, and Charlie offered to clean up their lunch and the kitchen.

"We're having our dinner on Friday night. You're not expecting anyone, are you?"

There it was. The question he was dreading. At least she was trying to be discreet and calm about it.

"No, I'm not. How many people are coming?"

"Your brothers and sisters, Fleur, Luna, Hermione, Harry, George's new girlfriend and Ginny's friend Leah." She sighed, "Poor girl doesn't have a family to spend the holidays with!"

Charlie relaxed, his mother didn't seem to be pressing too hard, and so didn't seem to be trying to set him up with anyone, including this girl, Ginny's friend. He squirmed a little bit. If his mother was, she would be the same age as Ginny, and that frightened him a little bit.

Ron came to the Burrow for dinner that night, surprised to see Charlie there. Charlie and Ron talked about his Auror training and the Quidditch season all through dinner. Charlie went to bed early, as he planned to visit the twins and Bill tomorrow.

--

Charlie arrived at WWW at 10 am, much to the dismay of his hung over brothers.

"You two went out drinking on a Thursday night?"

"It was a special night!" George replied, still rubbing his temples.

"Which was….?"

"Thursday!" His twin answered, finally locating the bottle of Hangover Potion. Charlie shook his head. "Oh, dearest brother, do you think you could watch the store while we recover a little while longer, Verity called in sick."

"She would," George mumbled.

Charlie suppressed a laugh. "Deal, but only if you two buy me lunch."

"Deal."

Charlie walked out to the front of the store and looked around at the merchandise. He was extremely proud of his brothers and their obvious business savvy and sheer brilliance. Who knew that the two Hogwarts-dropouts would become the entrepreneurs, business owners and inventors they were today?

There was a soft tinkle and someone shouted, "Boys! I'm home early!!"

Charlie, completely baffled, peeked his head out from the aisle he had been looking at, and saw a short, girl unbutton her grey peacoat, her cobalt blue scarf hanging loosely around her neck. "Sorry, did you need something?"

The girl, turned, obviously startled, but smiled when she finally looked at him, "Sorry, you must be Weasley?"

Charlie nodded, still confused. The girl stuck out her hand, "I'm Leah, I work here part-time."

Charlie smiled and shook her hand, "Charlie, Weasley as we've already established," he paused, "Do you always greet my brothers with 'Boys, I'm home'?"

Leah laughed, taking off her scarf and hanging it behind the counter along with her coat. "No, not always, I change it up every once in a while, keep them entertained."

Charlie leaned against the counter, "They are difficult ones to keep entertained to." Suddenly something dawned on him. "Are you the same Leah that is in Healer-training with Ginny?"

Leah cocked an eyebrow, pushing her short, light-brown hair behind her ear. "Either you've been stalking me without having ever met me, or someone in your family told you about me."

Charlie laughed, "Mum told me one of Ginny's Healer friends was coming to dinner tonight, and since you're name is Leah and you know my brothers…"

"Wonderful deduction skills, Mr. Weasley.":

"So than I assume I'm correct in my deductions?"

"Well, yes and no." She opened the store's book and Charlie cocked his eyebrow, waiting an answer. Leah's eyes passed from the open book to Charlie's arm which was resting close to the book. It was a muscular arm, tanned and freckled, and looking a second longer she noticed some white scars. She caught herself from staring at his arm before Charlie questioned her again.

"Yes, I'm coming to dinner, and yes I'm one of Ginny's Healer friends, but no I'm not in training with her. I finished my training four years ago."

Charlie smiled although obviously a little embarrassed. "Sorry, I just assumed you were in training with Ginny since you two were friends…"

Leah smiled, "It's all right. I started working her when I was going my training, you know, having heard about the twins at Hogwarts, and since I needed some cash during training…" Charlie nodded, understanding the rest. "Where are the twins, anyway?"

"Ah, Leah darling, we seen you've met our darling older brother Charlie."

Leah smiled, "And you two always told me that you were the better looking of your siblings!" She winked at Charlie.

Charlie looked at his brothers, "Have you been blatantly lying to everyone you meet, or just your poor unsuspecting employees?"

Fred and George look flabbergasted for a second but than looked at each other, smirking. And Charlie did not like the looks of those smirks. They quickly covered their smirks and Fred said to Leah, "Leah, how could you, who has known us for years meet Charlie for five minutes and think he's the best looking of the Weasley clan?"

"That's true," Charlie nodded, "You haven't met Percy."

Fred, George and Charlie laughed but Leah looked confused. "Don't worry, Leah dear, you won't be meeting Percy. He still doesn't talk to us."

"Right…"

Charlie looked at his watch, "Boys, can we go to lunch now? I want to stop in and see Bill before I have to go and help Mum step up for dinner."

George looked at Leah, "When do you have to be back at St. Mungo's?"

Leah rolled her eyes, "You two really don't listen to me ever, do you? I had a night shift last night, so I'm working here until 2 than I'm going home to sleep before dinner. Which you two promised you'd pick me up for."

Fred nodded, "Course, course. We'll be back by 2," he turned to Charlie, "Lunch?"

Charlie pulled on his coat and stuck out his hand to Leah, "It was wonderful to meet you, Leah, don't work too hard," he leaned in to whisper, "they were hung over this morning, and I'll see you at dinner tonight." She noticed more scars on his hand. He winked at her and she smiled back.

"Until tonight, Charlie."

--

It was too cold for the three Weasley brothers to talk as they walked down to Luna's Café. Charlie had never eaten there, but knowing Luna Lovegood, he was scared. As they walked down the street against the icy wind, he pulled his knit scarf over his mouth and thought about his surprise encounter with Leah. He was surprised to say the least that she was a licensed Healer and was friends with his kid sister. He was even more surprised that she was working at WWW. Did Healing pay that badly?

Why did she wear Muggle clothes and why did the twins allow her to wear them at work? Not that he had minded, she was beautiful and robes weren't particularly flattering…"Merlin" he thought to himself, "I sound like I've never looked at a woman before." Which of course, was not true. Charlie had known and briefly dated plenty of women - there had been quite a few at Hogwarts, although not nearly as many as Bill. And there had been some women in Romania - a few on the Reserve, although there had been very few pretty, single Dragon Keepers - and a handful in the neighboring villages.

But Leah was beautiful - not strikingly gorgeous, but simply beautiful. She had short, light brown hair, brown eyes, and full, pink lips. He had only met her for a few minutes, but seeing her interact with the twins, he knew she wasn't your average witch. The twins could only tolerate a certain type of girl, and Leah was obviously that type.

They finally made it to Luna's Café and Charlie was shocked to find it so busy. "Maybe we should go somewhere less crowded?"

"Nonsense!" Fred waved his hand. He walked up to the hostess and said, "Fred, George and Charlie Weasley to see Miss Lovegood."

The Hostess, a young, nervous looking witch nodded and nervously scurried away. Charlie looked at his younger brother, but Fred only smiled.

Two seconds later, Luna Lovegood walked - 'more like floated' noticed Charlie - over, looking more _normal_ than Charlie remembered. Gone were her radish earrings, but her large, beaded necklaces were still there. Her wand and a quill were stuck in her bun and she was wearing a pale blue - 'were those sparkles?' - robe. She smiled serenely at them, "Hello, boys. Charlie! So wonderful to see you! I hope your dragons haven't come down with lazaponsy."

Charlie smiled, "They haven't yet, but I'll make sure to keep watch."

Luna nodded and looked at the twins, "Your usual table is open!"

The twins led Charlie to a booth in the far back corner. "What is this a special Weasley table?"

"Of sorts, yes."

Charlie laughed and opened a menu, quickly skimming over all the oddly named dishes like "Laxockal Soup" and "Shufflepip Herder's Pie". Charlie was relieved to see the dishes had descriptions underneath and they all used _normal_ ingredients.

"So people actually like this place."

George nodded, "Ron really encouraged her to do something ah - normal when she and her father finally sold The Quibbler, so she opened this little Café. And with the help of Hannah Abbott, this place is one of the most popular places on Diagon Alley."

"It also helps that she's dating Ron Weasley."

Charlie nodded as the waitress came over. "What, no Firewhiskeys?"

Fred and George both gave their brother looks, grimacing. "Forge, who knew our brother was so bloody funny?"

"So how was Mom?"

Charlie knew exactly what George meant. "Well, she asked if I was bringing a guest, than informed me Harry, Luna, Hermione, Leah and Mira were coming. Who I'm very excited to meet, by the way."

George smiled, "She can't wait to meet you - actually, you're all she's been talking about lately…"

Charlie laughed, "So I should have the charm on than, yea?"

"Well, Leah will be there, so yea," Fred said quietly not daring to look his older brother in the eyes.

George covered his mouth with his hand, trying not to laugh.

"What are you going to try to do? Take Mom's job and try to set me up with her?"

"No, no, you just really seemed to like her, that's all," Fred said as innocently as possible.

"We could put good words in for you since you know, she takes our advice, and she's good friends with Mira…"

Charlie looked at the two of them, his eyes hard and both twins gulped. Charlie was the only Weasley who _really_ intimidated them. "Look, you two. The last thing I need is another Mum, all right? I just heard Mum mention her, so I didn't expect to meet her _working_ at your shop and I thought her to be Ginny's age. Merlin, why is it that anytime I talk to a witch around any of you lot, you all try to set me up. If I wanted a bloody girlfriend, I could bloody get one."

"Charlie -

- we didn't mean -

- we're sorry -

- we just meant -

- just a little fun -

- yea?"

Charlie grinned, "Frightened ya, didn't I?"

Both twins let out a deep breath. "If you weren't so much bigger than us…"

Charlie smiled and ate his lunch.

--

Charlie stepped into the large doors of Gringotts and without even having to say who he was or what business he wanted, the goblin waddled away, leaving Charlie in the front entrance alone and clueless.

Two minutes later, the goblin returned closely followed by Bill. "Charles!!"

"William!!" Charlie laughed and gave his big brother a hug, clapping him on the back. "Think we can mix pleasure with business?"

Bill laughed, "Course, little brother, want to check the ol' vault?" He turned around and Charlie fake-gasped.

"Your ponytail!"

"Ah, yes, I cut it off a month ago. My kid can't have some ponytail-wearing father!"

Charlie pretended to look horrified, making his brother laugh as they hopped in a cart to go to Charlie's vault. "Fleur did it! She made you cut it! She changed you!"

"Actually, her reaction was very similar to yours, although in angry-sounding French," Charlie winced, "No, it was my decision, and I needed a change."

The brothers hopped off the cart and opened Charlie's vault. "Merlin, I knew Dragon Keepers good money but, Merlin Charlie, you're loaded."

Charlie smiled, trying to hide his blush, "Well, we get compensated for our injuries and short - life spans."

Bill grimaced, "You know I hate when you talk like that."

"Thanks, Mum."

"What did you need at your vault anyway?"

"Wanted to check last month's pay got here and to take some out for holidays." He filled his small pouch and the two got back on the cart.

"Charlie."

"Yea?"

"I'll be a Dad in two months."

Charlie beamed and clapped his brother on the back. "I know, congratulations!"

Bill turned serious and looked at his younger brother but Charlie shook his head, "You're going to be a great -"

"No, no, I already talked to Dad about that and anyway, hullo, the rest of you lost turned out okay. No, Charlie, I want you to be the godfather."

"Seriously?"

"Of course."

Charlie grinned, "I'd be honored to, Bill! Is it okay with Fleur?"

Bill smiled, "Charlie, you're her second favorite Weasley."

They arrived back above ground and Bill led Charlie to his office. "How was Mum? Set you up on any dates yet?"

Charlie let out a dramatic sigh and plopped himself down on a chair. "Not directly, no. Yet at least. But she made sure to ask if I was bringing a guest." Bill chuckled. "She was actually a lot better about it though. You talk to her again?"

Bill laughed, "Only every time I talk to her. Who knew she'd actually listen?"

"I think Fred and George are convinced I like their employee - Leah - who's coming to dinner." Bill gave his brother a look. "Not you too! You're supposed to be on my side! You're supposed to defend me! You know I could dates and the like, and you know I actually talk to women! Just because we'll be the only single people at Christmas, doesn't mean everyone needs to set me up with her. Merlin!"

Bill put his hands in the air, surrendering. "I'm glad I didn't even have to say anything." Charlie rolled his eyes. "But Leah _is_ a nice girl, and we all like her and…" he shook his head at Charlie's reaction, "all I'll say is, at least you guys will end up being good friends."

Charlie nodded. "Fine, good, just don't go helping Mum, Fred and George setting me up with her."

"Fine, fine, I'll make sure Mum, Fred and George stay clear so you can win her over just by your natural charm alone."

Charlie leaped from his chair and the two brothers pretend-wrestled, making sure not to knock anything over, just like when they were kids.

--

"Leah, we're home!"

"What did we miss?"

"How much money did we make?"

"How did you like Charlie?"

"Where's my hat?"

Leah put up her hands to quite the twins. "Now, you didn't miss anything, there were only a few customers, I don't know where your hat is and what kind of question is _that_?"

"You went out of order dear, what question are you so distraught over?"

"I think it was my hat - I'm distraught over too, love."

Leah rolled her eyes and instead of humoring them, decided to keep quiet. They'd break.

"Love? What did you think of Charlie?"

"Didn't like him as much as you like us though I bet."

"Although, Gred, Charlie _is_ everyone's favorite."

"That's true - aside from you, dear Forge."

"Naturally. Even Charlie is Ron's favorite. Ginny's too."

"Bill's obviously."

"Mayhap even Percy?"

"Who? - Oh, right, Percival." He shuddered.

"So, love, thoughts on Charlie?"

Leah looked between the two in utter disbelief. "You two are ridiculous."

"Come now! You're single!"

"He's single!"

"Oi! I had a date the other might."

"How did it go?"

She mumbled incoherently. "That's not the point."

Fred and George, knowing they were navigating towards angry waters, said, "Fine, fine-"

"We shan't say anymore-"

"- but! We like you -"

"- and everyone loves Charlie -"

"- so -" They Apparated to the back room before Leah could throw her magazine at them.

--

Leah Apparated to her flat with only one thing on her mind - _sleep_. She felt like she had been awake for days. But she was used to it. She didn't like when people called her a workaholic, but it was the truth. She worked a lot.

But she truly enjoyed her work. She loved Healing the Wizardry Community. And she had _needed_ a flexible part-time job years ago when she was starting her training, but now she just loved working at WWW. She loved working with the twins, and they allowed her _very_ flexible hours.

She stepped into her bedroom and smiled upon seeing her unmade bed. She slipped off her shoes and coat and without even bothering to put pajamas on, climbed into bed.

--

Fred and George were throwing out new ideas to each other when the bell tinkled. "Sorry, love, about to close for the night!"

A raven-haired witch walked into the back room. "Ah, now that's too bad..." George smiled and stood up to kiss Mira.

Fred grimaced, "Please, spare us."

Mira rolled her eyes and ignored him. "So how was your day with Charlie?"

George pouted, "We only had lunch with him. He _had_ to go see Bill."

Mira rubbed George's back, "Oh, you poor boys!"

"Oh, stop mocking us, Mira, love."

Mira smiled, "Now, Fred, no need to get bitter." She turned back to George. "What time did you tell Leah we'd pick her up?"

"Seven."

"Okay, I'm going to go pop by, make sure my outfit is acceptable."

George smiled seductively, wrapping his arm around her waist, "Anything you wear will be acceptable…"

Mira laughed, kissing him quickly, "Nice try. It's my first Weasley pre-Holiday dinner, okay?" She turned to leave but Fred stopped her.

"Do you think we should set-up Leah with Charlie?"

Her steel-grey eyes grew bigger. "No, no, no, no! You know how she is!"

"But she set us up!"

Mira looked at her boyfriend, "No, love, she introduced us. Listen you two, stay out of it. If she likes Charlie, she'll pursue him, _don't worry_." And giving them both stern looks, Disapparated.

"Bother."

--

Leah's alarm was just going off when Mira Apparated with a loud _CRACK!_ "Merlin Mira, did you have to scare the living daylights out of me?"

Mira grinned, taking off her winter robe, "Come on, Leah, it's already 6:30! Fred and George will be here at 7!"

"I know, I know, Mira, why are you here so early?"

Mira smiled sheepishly, "I wanted to make sure I looked okay."

Leah rubbed her eyes and smiled. "Let me shower and wake up and than we'll see! You can go turn on the telly if you'd like."

Mira nodded, "So you won't make fun of me for wanting to look decent?"

Leah laughed, "No! You want to look decent for the entire Weasley clan, I understand!"

Mira smiled, relieved. "Okay, good. I didn't know if I was making too big of a deal or not…" Leah shook her head and stepped into the bathroom to shower. She emerged ten minutes later in her towel, her hair already done and looked over Mira's outfit. She was wearing jeans and dark green v-neck sweater that wasn't too low-cut. She was wearing minimal make-up and her black hair was in a loose, low ponytail. Leah grinned, "You look marvelous!!"

Mira rolled her eyes, "It's not too much or too - not enough?"

"Not at all!" Leah turned to her own closet. "Do you think blue is too sacrilege for a Christmas dinner?"

"Well, technically, it's just a _normal_, regular dinner…"

Leah laughed, "Ravenclaw-blue it is!"

Mira laughed and sat on Leah's bed fiddling with the comforter and watching her best friend pick out an outfit. They had been in Ravenclaw together, although Mira was a year behind Leah and was therefore the same year as Harry, Ron and Hermione. She and Mira were friends at Hogwarts, both being top in their year and both having Muggles for parents and guardians. Once Mira had graduated, Leah became her mentor at St. Mungo's and the two became almost inseparable.

"Leah did you set me and George up?"

Leah spun around, her head just popping out of her cobalt top. 'What?"

"Did you set me and George up?"

"No? I mean, I thought you guys would be good together, but I had introduced you guys a while back when you were still kinda with Chris and he was with Alicia."

Mira nodded. She and George hadn't even _hated_ each other, but she found him nearly intolerable two years ago. But once they were both single, the "hatred" almost got out of control - "because of the sexual tension and obvious magnetism" Fred used to say - until one night when a bunch of them had gone out to a pub. They took it slow for a few weeks, but both realized they had wanted more. They had been dating seriously now for 10 months. (On their nine-month anniversary, Leah and Fred presented them with a baby-doll. The best gag gift either had given).

Leah grabbed a grey cardigan to wear over her cobalt, short-sleeve top. "Why? Are you growing tired of him?"

"Of George?! How could anyone? No, he just thought that you set us up."

Leah smiled as she put on her mascara. "Well, if I did, I obviously did a bloody good job of being stealth about it."

Mira laughed, "Hurry up, they'll be here soon!" She watched Leah put on a little bit of eyeshadow, something she _rarely_ did. "Soooo, you meet Charlie?"

"Yea - everyone's favorite sibling apparently." She turned around, "I look acceptable?" She was wearing black skinny jeans with her cobalt top and grey cardigan and grey flats. Her short brown hair was straight with her few side bangs pinned back.

Mira cocked an eyebrow, "Trying to impress someone are we?"

Leah rolled her eyes. "Yes, Mr. Weasley. I think this and my vast knowledge of all things Muggle will suffice to seduce him?" There were two loud _CRACK!_s and the twins walked in, there eyes covered.

"Everyone decent?"

"Why are you seducing our father?"

"Actually - who cares if you're decent?" George uncovered his eyes. "No such luck."

Mira and Leah rolled their eyes and grabbed their wands and coats to Apparate to the Burrow.

--


	2. II

"Charlie

"Charlie!!" Ginny burst in to her brother's room and jumped on to him for a big hug.

"Ginny! How was Healing? How's Harry? Do I have to hurt him?"

"Healing is wonderful! Leah, my mentor, she's coming to dinner tonight, introduced me to Healer Lang the other day. Hopefully I'll get my license soon and than I can get promoted! She's been such a huge help and Harry's good and _NO_ don't hurt him!" She was talking a mile-a-minute and all Charlie could do was laugh.

"Charlie! Ginny! Come back down!"

Charlie shooed her out of his room so he could change his shirt. He had showered, but his mother didn't like his original flannel that he had rolled the sleeves up so he picked out a brown long-sleeve shirt and pushed up his sleeves. His mother would have a fit.

He was walking downstairs just as the twins walked through the door. "Charlie! Thank you for taking our robes!" They threw their coats at him, but he didn't move to catch them, instead watching them fall to the ground. Two girls behind the twins tried to cover their laughter and Charlie looked at them.

"Ah, hullo again, Leah. I'll take your coat. And you must be Mira!" He took her hand and dramatically kissed it as Mira bit her lip to keep from laughing. "I've heard _so_ much about you and I feel terribly that you had to settle with George. Perhaps, if by chance, we had met first -"

"All right, all right, Mr. - "

"Mr. Charming to you."

"Mr. Charming - leave my girlfriend alone. _I'll_ take her coat."

Charlie shrugged and winked at Mira who laughed. He took Leah's coat and said to Fred, "And where is the lovely Hermione?"

"Had to stay late at work, she'll be here soon."

Charlie hung up Leah's coat and followed them to the kitchen when Ginny, Ron, Luna, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were already waiting. "Dear where are Harry and Hermione?"

"Hermione's coming straight from work."

"And Harry had to shower quickly after practice."

"And Bill and Fleur had to Floo. Everyone sit, sit!" she turned around and saw Mira and Leah, "Oh, hullo dears," she gave them one big hug and kissed them both on the cheek, "You two look wonderful, oh please sit, I don't want either of you to lift a finger - no, no, you're our guests!" She turned to Charlie, "Charlie, help set the food out."

Charlie rolled his eyes, "Yes, Mum."

Fred and George looked hurt, "We're here _too_ Mum!"

"Oh, grab the pot and dish there than please?" Ginny and Ron laughed, but stopped as soon as their mother turned, lest she gave them something to do too.

Harry walked in through the front door a few seconds later, followed by Bill and Fleur stumbling in from the fireplace. "Sorry we're late - got back from work late, and than - "

"I got a craving for peeckles…" (Fleur's accent had much improved, Charlie noticed).

Everyone was just sitting down when Hermione rushed in, "Sorry I'm so late! Mr. Lazlo needed the case files by 8pm…" She sat down in between Ron and Fred. Charlie was sitting in between Leah and Bill. Upon seeing Charlie, Hermione squealed, got up and ran around the table to give him a hug. "Charlie!! Fred didn't tell me you were going to be here!"

Charlie looked at Fred who tried to look innocent. Hermione apologizing again sat down so everyone could eat. Charlie spoke first after a few bites, "Luna, your café was amazing! The food was excellent, the ambiance was perfect."

Luna smiled, "Thank you, Charlie. I'm glad you enjoyed it," she turned to Ron, "it would have been impossible without Ron supporting me the whole time." Ron blushed and everyone laughed, making Ron blush harder.

Mr. Weasley nodded towards Leah, "And I think we _all_ have to thank Leah for helping Ginny with her training," Mrs. Weasley nodded enthusiastically, "She introduced her to Healer Lang."

Leah waved her hand, "Please, please, it was _nothing. _I don't know how much it will help anyway. And Mira would have done the same - "

" - if I were as an important a Healer as Ms. Cooper here."

Mrs. Weasley smiled, "Mira, darling, we know you would have, and dear, an Emergency Healer is just as important as - "

"She's thinking about finding a specialty, Mum."

Mira blushed, "Nothing is determined yet, but they want me to look into maybe Magical Creatures and all that." George grinned at Mira, rubbing his hand on her leg to comfort and encourage her. Mrs. Weasley smiled, "Oh, that's wonderful, Mira! Congratulations!"

Leah smiled at Mira and Ginny, "I have the two best protégés in all of St. Mungo's!" Ginny playfully stuck out her tongue and Mira punched her arm.

Charlie asked Harry about Quidditch and how the team was looking. Harry, Ron and Hermione were all guaranteed top spots in the Auror Department after just a month of training, but only Ron stayed in the Department. Harry wanted to play Quidditch, and than when he retired would join the Aurors. He played on Puddlemere United with Oliver and on the British Quidditch team, playing Seeker for both. Hermione worked as a Junior Lawyer for _three_ different departments, but was well on her way to being a Senior Lawyer.

There was some idle chat among everyone about the baby, ("Edmund! Igor! George Fred!" Ronnekins Junior!" Fred and George shouted out for names), about work, about Ron and Luna engagement and their wedding in February.

"Charlie you _are_ coming, right?"

"Course little brother, it's your _wedding_!! Why wouldn't I come?"

"Well…"

"Well, Charlie you just rarely come to England and we just want to make sure you can make it."

Everyone was quiet, looking between Luna and Charlie, who let out a nervous and slightly annoyed laugh. "Well, since I live in Romania and don't exactly have a work schedule as flexible as everyone else since I work _around_ the _dragons_, it's a little hard to come visit every weekend. And I'm here for all the important events, aren't?"

"Of course you are dear," Mrs. Weasley said softly, "Luna wasn't accusing you, she was just saying that it would be easier if you lived in England, that's all."

"Mum…" Bill said warningly, but it was Mr. Weasley who successfully averted a crisis. "Molly dear, we've all been through this many times and I can't think we need to again in front of our guests."

Mrs. Weasley looked at Mira and Leah, "Yes, yes, of course, sorry dears."

Mr. Weasley sighed and said to Charlie, "So, how _is_ the Reserve? Any closer to being Head Dragon Keeper?"

Charlie grinned, "Next in line, Pops."

George snorted, "What is this, a Royal job? You have to be the next heir?" Mira smacked the back of his head and Charlie laughed.

"Almost. Ned's going to retire within the next year and than I'll probably be Head Dragon Keeper."

"So you'll run the Reserve?" Leah asked, taking a bite. Charlie looked over at her, generally surprised. "What?" she looked around and smiled lopsidedly, "was that a stupid question?"

Charlie smiled, "No! No, it's just that usually only Bill and Dad ask me questions about the Reserve."

"We ask!"

Charlie looked at the twins and said sarcastically, "Yea, to see if I met a new woman Keeper or went on a date."

"We're just looking out for your well-being!"

Charlie shook his head and turned back to Leah, "The Head Dragon Keeper is in charge of all the dragons and the Keepers but he - or she - has to report to the Chief of the Reserve."

Leah cocked an eyebrow and smiled at Charlie, "Chief?"

Charlie held up his hands and smiled, "Hey, don't look at me - I didn't come up with the name. The Chief basically just runs the Reserve, takes care of the budget, all that and never really deals with the dragons."

"That's why everyone wants to be the Head Dragon Keeper," Mr. Weasley said proudly, looking at his son.

Charlie took another bite, "Now, it's not set in stone, but hopefully I'll be the Head Dragon Keeper, but if not, being a measly Keeper is fine by me!" He put his left arm up on the table to take a drink when Mrs. Weasley, seeing his arm, gasped.

"Charles Edward Weasley! Look at that arm!" Everyone stopped eating to look at it, including Charlie.

"I'm looking at it."

"Looks just like Bill's."

"And Ron's."

"No, Ron's smaller…"

"No offense, bud, you're skinnier."

"Thanks."

"It's tanner than Bill's."

"And way more freckles than ours, Forge."

"And more - oh."

"Oh is right. Charlie! Look at all those scars!"

Charlie held up both his arms and admired all the long, short, thin, thick, white, pink and brown scars. "I've got more on my arms up here too -"

"Charles! How could you put yourself in danger like that?"

"Mum, he works with _dragons_!"

"Mum -"

"Molly -"

"Fine, fine, I know, I just worry is all. Charlie, dear, couldn't you do _something_ about those scars?"

"But, Mum, the ladies love scars!" Ginny looked at Harry who smiled. Until he saw the glares her brothers gave him.

"Some ladies apparently. I wouldn't know. They - uh - they make for some good conversation starters!"

Hermione, seeing Harry's discomfort piped up, "Yes! Say, Charlie, what's that scar from?" She pointed to a small scratch on his hand that was darker than the others.

Charlie smiled, "From Ginny actually."

"I _never_ scratched you, Charlie!"

"Baby Ginny crawled away from the twins who were tormenting her and accidentally scratched me as I tried to save her."

"I seem to recall scratches from some babe with long nails and a vice-like gripe," George said, turning to Fred and scratching his chin.

"Yes, must have been Baby Ron."

Everyone laughed, even Ron. Charlie was glad for the heat to be off him as Ron asked Bill about visiting Egypt again, but Mrs. Weasley intervened again. "But Charlie, couldn't you do something about those scars? Leah, Mira, couldn't you help? Is there some kind of salve or something?"

Mira shrugged and took a sip of her drink so Leah answered, "I don't know if there is hope for 17 year old scars, but I can see what I can do to help. Although," she looked at Charlie, "it looks as though he doesn't want to part with those scars."

"Just promise me you'll look at them later and try to convince him?"

"Of course, Mrs. Weasley." The conversation returned to where Ron and Luna should honeymoon when Charlie felt Leah nudge his leg with her own. He turned his head to her, his eyebrow cocked, a small smile playing at his lips. She bent her head toward her own hand and forearm: there were small, darker scars, some lines, some fatter and resembling circles and she had a few white thin scars on her fingers. He looked at her face again, she was smiling and Charlie noticed that her eyes weren't _just_ brown, but had some hazel and green mixed in.

"Dogs," she whispered, "spells gone awry, hiking," he smiled and she whispered again, "not _nearly_ as exciting as dragons."

He grinned and whispered back, subtly pointing to a rather ugly brownish scar on the inside of his arm near his elbow, "Or being clumsy."

She laughed quietly and replied, "I love scars. So don't worry, I won't force my ultimate scar-healing salve on you." Charlie smiled and whispered a "Thanks" before Mira caught Leah's attention.

"What was it that wizard said to you yesterday, Healer Cooper?"

Leah rolled her eyes at her friend and deadpanned, "Well, Healer Dean, I spoke to _so_ many wizards yesterday…"

Mira rolled her eyes back, "You know the guy -"

Leah clamped her hand over Mira's mouth, "Sorry! Healer-Patient Confidentiality!" Ginny started laughing, obviously knowing the story.

"Oh, come on, Leah! Ginny and Mira know the story!"

Leah looked around at everyone, "Fine, fine, fine," she said, although she was obviously distressed, "BUT" she put a finger up to reiterate her point, "this man was severely out of his mind, had just gotten out of a very difficult procedure and so was on a lot of pain-magic. And what he said was NOT true! He didn't know what he was saying."

Ron nodded, "Yes, yes, fine, Mira just tell us."

"Well," she began, "he saw Leah as she was writing some things down on his chart and he looked up at her and said, 'You were my favorite from PlayWitch.'"

Everyone started laughing, save for Mrs. Weasley who looked mortified.

"Leah," George said in between laughter, "if you were really that hard up for money, we could have given you a raise - "

" - you needn't pose nude for a wizard's magazine!"

"Boys!" Mrs. Weasley shouted and everyone stopped laughing.

"Mum, Leah didn't pose for PlayWitch! She would never do such a thing!"

"Nor will I ever!"

Ginny Mira, Leah, George and Fred continued to try to convince Mrs. Weasley who finally smiled and said, "I'm sorry, Leah, I never meant to offend, I know you wouldn't do such a thing…"

Leah sighed, relieved, "Mrs. Weasley, I can assure you I was mortified when he said that."

"What did you say?" Harry asked.

"I - I told him thanks, that I - um had fun doing the shoot - and then he finally passed out from the medications."

Ron tried to hide his laughter, but Ginny leaned around Luna and smacked him upside the head. "She _had_ to humor him, Ron!"

"So much for Healer-Patient Confidentiality."

--

The rest of the dinner was uneventful, with just more idle chat and "safe" topics - even Fred and George remained tame. As everyone was finishing up, Mr. Weasley asked Leah and Mira again about their Healing - he wanted to know what kinds of Healing they specifically did.

Mira looked at Leah who nodded for her to go first, "Well, I've had my license for almost two years now and since they had been short staffed in the Urgent Care, I joined that, but I'm really hoping for that Magical Creatures position. And, I think I can maybe manage to squeeze my way onto Leah's Board…"

Mr. Weasley looked at Leah, "You have a Board?"

Leah smiled. "Board of Research for Muggle Remedies for Magical and Non-Magical Maladies."

"BRMRMNMM? What a _terrible_ abbreviation!"

Mira smiled at Bill, "That's why everyone usually calls it the Board of Muggle Medications."

"And you're the Head of this Board?"

"Yes, Mr. Weasley. I don't do the actual testing, but I compile the research on medications and remedies for my staff to research that are more easily administrated and less invasive and have less side-effects that magic would," she paused, "- it's terribly boring, I'm sorry -"

Mr. Weasley shook his head, encouraging her to continue and Harry asked, "So how did you get to Head this Board?"

"Well, St. Mungo's only had a limited supply of penicillin, so I went to the Head Healer, Healer Lang and the rest of the Board, with a report I had compiled of all sorts of Muggle pain medications, antibiotics and the like that could help with certain procedures and magical ailments, and explained the inevitability of a mutation and merging of non-magical and magical diseases. Don't worry, Mrs. Weasley that won't happen for a long time, but the Board was feeling progressive that day," Bill smiled ruefully, "so they approved my idea, gave me a budget and allowed me to appoint researchers."

"How old is the Board?" Charlie asked.

"Only a few months - the paperwork to approve and commence was unbelievable."

"So you're a Healer within St. Mungo's too?"

"Yes," she didn't want to continue - she didn't want to seem like she was bragging.

Mira rolled her eyes, "She's the Head Healer of the Non-Magical Persons and Other Magical Beings Department -"

"Or as we like to call it - Squibs, Giants, Goblins and Others Department!"

"Fred!" Hermione hit him.

"And she's Second-in-Command Healer of the Maladies and Injuries from Magical Plants Department."

"Not Second-in-Command, I'm just a Healer."

"Fine, Junior Head? Second Head? Next in line to be Head?" George said sarcastically.

"And," Ginny continued, "she's also a prominent Healer in the Magical Bugs Department."

"And she's the youngest Head in St. Mungo's history _AND_ the youngest Head of a Board."

"And she's had the _shortest_ Healing training - 8 months-"

"- 10 days -"

"- and 8 hours -"

Leah blushed, hiding her face as Ginny continued, "And it _usually_ takes a year and a half to two years to complete."

Hermione, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were beaming and everyone else was smiling and laughing. "Leah! You never told us _all_ that!"

Leah smiled ruefully, "Well, my nameplate only reads 'Healer Cooper' and you never asked to see my resume!"

"And you've obviously never been to her office!"

Charlie was curious, "So why do you still work part-time at WWW?"

Leah sighed, "They won't let me quit."

"Boys!"

"I'm kidding, Mrs. Weasley! I only work half part-time so the twins can train new employees for all of their other stores."

"All 5 of them, thank you very much!"

"But I really enjoy working with," ("for" George interjected) "the twins, and I need a break from St. Mungo's sometimes."

"And unlike normal people who relax or go on vacation, Leah works more."

"Hey! If the St. Mungo's Board is pleased with my Muggle Medications Board, they could send me all over Europe to other major hospitals! Maybe even to the States or Australia!"

"We could use any Healers in Romania. There's only one actual hospital, in the one major city, and it's tiny and terribly understaffed. And we can never keep a Healer on the Reserve for more than a year."

Leah smiled, not sure what Charlie was trying to say, if anything at all. "Well, if St. Mungo's sends me to Romania, I will be sure to kidnap a few unsuspecting wizards and witches and train them to be the best Healers Romania has ever seen."

Charlie grinned and asked Mrs. Weasley if she needed help cleaning up the table. "No, no, go have drinks everyone, and I'll call you in for pie in a few minutes.

Harry made his way over to Charlie and Bill who were laughing about something, "Harry! I think I remembered seeing you and Oliver on the cover of Quidditch Weekly."

Harry rolled his eyes and smiled, "Publicity, what can I say?"

"You going to take Firebolt on their offer?" Bill asked and Charlie looked at them both, very confused.

"Endorsement deals. I have a few offers, but I'm letting my coach decide since I don't particularly care." He looked around and lowered his voice, "I already talk to Ron, and I'll talk to the twins in a more private place so they don't let it slip, but -"

"You want to make sure with us -"

"Before you ask for Dad's permission to propose."

Harry laughed, "Ron tell you?"

"Nah," Charlie laughed, clapping Harry on the shoulder, "We knew it would happen sooner or later."

"And yes, you have our permission and our blessing." Harry let out a sigh of relief but before he could express his thanks, Mrs. Weasley called everyone in for pies.

They ate the pies quickly enough and look at her watch, Mira said, "Mrs. Weasley we had such a lovely time, and we hate to cut the night early, but Leah, Ginny and I all have early shifts tomorrow morning and need to get back to get some sleep."

Mrs. Weasley nodded and stood up to say good-bye to her daughter and the two girls, "Girls, thank you so much for coming, and please come before Christmas Eve if your work schedules allow it!"

"Oh, of course Mrs. Weasley! We would never give up an opportunity to eat your cooking!" Mrs. Weasley blushed and gave Leah a hug.

Everyone got up to say goodbye to the girls, and Leah winked at Charlie as she shook his hand again, "Don't worry, I'll bring my scar salve to the next family dinner." Charlie smiled and Mr. Weasley made Leah promise to keep him updated on her Board.

The three girls walked outside to Apparate to their flats, only to wake up 5 hours later.

--

Leah was walking into St. Mungo's at 8am, the beginning of her shift, when she walks past Healer Lang, "Ah, Healer Cooper, do you have a few minutes?"

Leah grinned, "Of course, Healer Lang, I was just walking over to my office to get organized for the day, but I always have plenty of time to spare for my wonderful boss."

"Ah," Healer Lang laughed, "flattery will get you nowhere, Healer Cooper, come, walk with me to my office." Healer Lang asked about her department and if she thought she needed more Healers brought in, to which Leah replied that she didn't quite yet. "Healer Cooper, you know I don't play favorites, but that department means a lot to the hospital, especially since after the War…"

Leah nodded, "Sir, I know, and as soon as we feel understaffed, I will make sure to write up a request form."

"Very well. And have you thought about who you want to bring on to your Board?"

"Yes, Healer Lang, I was thinking about suggesting Healer Dean, she's half-Muggle, but was raised by her Muggle father, and she'd be a benefit and a great addition to the Board. And I'm also suggesting her to Healer Murphy for the Maladies and Injruies from Magical Creatures Department."

Healer Lang nodded, "Yes, Healer Murphy is in the final stages of adding her on to his team. And I've also looked into young Ms. Weasley's files. Once she finishes her training, she'll most likely be put into the Maladies and Injuries from Magical Plants Department." Leah thanked Healer Lang , and upon reaching his office, he invited her in for a few minutes to discuss a few more things. "Now, Healer Cooper, all of this information I'm about to tell you is still in the very beginning stages, so it's still very much confidential," Leah nodded, taking a seat across from her boss, "but Healer Smith is going to be leaving the Plants Department and becoming Head Healer of the Urgent Care Department and will also oversee the Training. Now, I know you have a lot of responsibilities around St. Mungo's already, which is why I'm letting you think about this, but when Healer Smith leaves the Plant Department to replace Healer Fumke, I would like to have you step-up to become Head of the Plants Department. Now, I know this is a huge undertaking, so you would be able to relieve yourself from Bugs, and," he smiled, knowing she'd be interrupting with a question, "if your Board becomes the success that I believe it will, you would be granted a sabbatical to go around to other hospitals to present your research."

Leah let out a long breath and smiled, "Wow, Healer Lang, I really, really want to thank you for thinking of me to Head another Department. I don't know why you have such great faith in my abilities to lead two Departments and a Board at such a young age, but I would like to really thank you. And yes, I will think about it very seriously before committing or not committing."

Healer Lang smiled and stood up, "Thank you, Healer Cooper, now please, I've taken up too much of your time already, I hope to run into you again soon."

--

Charlie Flooed to his brother's cottage for a quick lunch. Fleur shouted a "Hullo," from her room where she was resting and writing a letter to her sister.

Bill gave Charlie a sandwich and said to his brother, "You know, Fleur could not stop talking about Leah last night. I mean, she'd already met her a few times, but after last night, she could only think about becoming a Healer herself," Bill laughed, "it was rather funny actually. And she mentioned a few times how she thought you and Leah would be perfect together, I believe she said, 'They would make beautiful babies!'" he said with an exaggerated French accent.

Charlie laughed, "Please, Bill, cut to the chase. You want me to admit that I think she's beautiful and obviously insanely intelligent, passionate about her work, and that I clearly wouldn't mind getting to know her more, but come on Bill, you hear how much she works? And how much I work? It wouldn't work out anyway, even if we gave it some time to get better acquainted."

Bill smiled, taking a big bite of his sandwich, "But you definitely like her."

Charlie rolled his eyes, "She seems like a great gal, Bill, what do you want me to say?"

"I really think you'd be good for each other."

"William, I've known her for a few hours, give it some time, yea? Just because she's a humanitarian, was interested in my dragons, is incredibly sexy and can hold her own against the twins _and_ Mum…" Charlie shook his head, "Stop getting into my head, dear brother."

The brothers finished their lunch, and bidding Fleur goodbye, went to go visit the twins at WWW.

"Ah, hullo, older brothers of ours."

"The whole lot of us are having drinks tonight. At a Muggle pub!"

Charlie laughed, "The whole lot?"

"The kids, Oliver, Lee, and Verity and whoever else gets dragged alone."

Bill refused, "Unfortunately, Fleur hates that I can drink and she can't, so I'll have to decline, sorry kids."

Charlie thought for a moment, "Well, it's been a while since I've seen you two or Ron drunk, and I'd love to see Ginny drink, and Hermione must be hilarious…I'm in."

Fred and George gave each other a look which neither of their older brothers saw.

--

Mira and Ginny stopped by Leah's office on their wait out of St. Mungo's. "Oi!" Mira called, "What time are you off?"

"I should be done round 9:30, why?"

"We're all going drinking tonight, and you _have_ to come!" Ginny pleaded.

Leah looked up from her paperwork and smiled, "I haven't gotten drunk in a while and I don't have to come into late tomorrow, so why not? That Muggle Pub we've been going to, yea?"

Mira grinned, "We better see you by at least 10."

Leah laughed, "We're always drinking so early…I'll get done as soon as I can and take the quickest shower of my life and meet you kids there."

Mira and Ginny left St. Mungo's and Apparated to Ginny and Hermione's apartment, where much to the older girls' dismay, Ginny forced them to get ready and meet her approval before going out. Mira and Hermione enjoyed dressing up and looking "sexy" as Ginny always liked to say, in their Muggle attire, but they had liked it more when they were helping Ginny pick out the perfect Muggle clothing, not the other way around. Leah never allowed Ginny to help her pick out an outfit or wait for her approval. She always joked that as the eldest, she couldn't _possibly_ take advice from someone _so_ much younger. Ginny would always pout and laughing, Leah would await her approval, which was always given. Leah had a sense of style that while simplistic, always seemed to fit the occasion as well as herself.

--

A/N: Leaving it here, but I should have an update fairly soon of what everyone is wearing and basically the pub/club scene(s). I hope the dinner stuff wasn't too much, I know this is kinda boring, but I'm enjoying writing it, so….

Please review!


	3. III

Charlie was used to drinking at Muggle pubs, so was already wearing appropriate attire when he arrived at the twins' flat. He was surprised the twins knew what to wear, and kept their outfits so tame and normal, nothing like the electric and sometimes nauseating colors they wore at WWW. They were both wearing jeans and polos, Fred in white and George in green. They Apparated to an alley way in London and made their way over to the Muggle pub, The Smog, which Charlie noticed as they walked in was also a sort of discotheque. They got in with little problem since it was still relatively early for a Saturday night. Ron, Harry, and Oliver were already there, having their first beers.

Luna had arrived separately from Hermione, Ginny and Mira since she had to hire an additional cook for her café. She was wearing a simple pale blue top, jeans and flats, her platinum blonde hair down.

Ginny had approved her friends' outfits: Mira was wearing a black v-neck top that tied in the back, grey jeans, and bright blue heels, her black hair in a high pony-tail with a poof. Her makeup was done, but not as dramatically as Ginny's who was wearing a long, emerald green top, dark jeans, and black heels, her long, red hair down in their natural waves. Hermione was wearing her new deep purple, long halter top, dark jeans and silver heels. Her hair was also down, and was more dramatic than Mira's. They arrived at The Smog after the guys had finished their first drinks, and after saying hullo to everyone, Charlie announced that he would be buying them all a round of drinks in order to "Celebrate my triumphant return to England!". The boys and Mira had another beer while Luna, Hermione and Ginny all had martinis. Everyone cheered Charlie and began chatting and drinking for another hour before Leah showed up.

She had left St. Mungo's as soon as she could, rushed back to her flat and gotten ready in 20 minutes. She had showered quickly and done her hair with little effort, a short pony-tail with a large poof. She did her make-up quickly, and within minutes she Apparated to the same spot Charile and the twins had earlier.

Charlie was laughing at how giggly Ginny was getting the more she drank and was simultaneously gaping that Hermione had allowed Fred to drag her to the dance floor. (He had not believed his eyes when he saw that Ron didn't even struggle when Luna brought him out to dance). But he stopped laughing as soon as he saw Leah enter the pub. She was slipping off her coat at the coat-check to reveal a bright red, dangerously low V-neck top and a pair of dark jeans, her silver heels peeping out. George and Mira saw her enter to and waved her over to their table, but not before a Muggle stopped and tried to buy her a drink, to which she had politely declined. She dropped her black clutch down on the table and without even bothering to say hello, said, "How far behind?"

"An hour, my dear."

"Bollocks." She left her clutch and walked over to the bar to order her drinks.

Charlie, who was finally starting to slightly feel the alcohol, walked up behind her and leaned against the bar, "I bought everyone else their first round to celebrate my return from Romania, so let me buy you -"

Leah smiled, knowing she wouldn't be able to talk him out of it, "Tequila." Charlie raised an eyebrow, obviously surprised and laughing, Leah waved the bartender over. "Two tequila shots, and a lime wedge and a salt shaker if you have it." The bartender winked and within a few seconds, set up her two shot glasses and a plate with the lime and salt as Charlie slid the money over the counter. Leah licked the salt and took both shots right after another, and quickly sucked on the lime. She looked over at Charlie and shoved his shoulder and laughed, "Shut up!" She waved the bartender over again, "A Guinness and-" she looked at Charlie.

"Make that two please. To new friends," he said as they clinked glasses and Leah slid her money over the counter to the bartender. She turned, leaning her one arm against the bar to face Charlie and the dance floor. He could feel her eyes on his body briefly, but he didn't say anything, only smiled to himself.

"I'm surprised you have Muggle money, know what a Guinness is, and _own_ your own Muggle clothes," he raised another eyebrow, "those obviously aren't the twins. You're much taller than they are." She paused, "Unless you have a Muggle Romanian girlfriend you're trying to keep a secret."

He grinned and rested his own arm on the bar to face her, "No, I'm self-taught. The other Keepers and I frequent Muggle pubs quite often. And Muggle clothes are much more fun than, you know, boring robes."

Leah nodded, "It took Mira, Hermione and I _forever_ to teach the boys how to dress, with some help from Ginny of course, once she got the hang of it, and Mira and I _months_ to teach that whole lot about drinks," she laughed, "it was like teaching kids how to ride a broom."

Leah couldn't help but think that Charlie looked truly sexy in his Muggle clothes, and she knew she couldn't blame it on the tequila. He filled out his blue oxford quite nicely, and his arms seemed to almost bulge out of the rolled up sleeves. (The navy tie had been a nice touch). He was stocky, like the twins, but he was taller and much more muscular, thanks in part to his job. She drank a few more sips of her beer and resisted the urge to reach out and touch Charlie's hair: it was a softer, lighter color than Ron's, but was he was still obviously a Weasley. She smiled, "I should probably head back to the table to actually say hello to everyone."

Charlie nodded and they brought their drinks to the table. "Caught up, Leah dear?"

"Not even close, I'm afraid, but I think I'd rather just watch you lot make fools of yourself instead."

"Oh, Leah, come on! You have to dance with us later!"

Leah laughed, "We'll see, we'll see. You know I have to be sloshed in order to do that in public."

Leah said hello to all the girls and than Oliver stood up to give her a hug and kiss hello. Charlie watched as his younger friend from Hogwarts' hand linger on her waist and couldn't help but feel slightly jealous. He whispered something in her and Leah put her hand on his shoulder she was laughing so hard. George sat down next to Charlie and following Charlie's gaze, whispered, "Jealous, brother?"

Charlie didn't need to say anything, just turned his head towards George who became frightened and trying to laugh said, "They dated a few times - Fred and I reintroduced them during one of our drinking nights a while back," he turned back to Charlie, who was watching them again. "They sort of knew each other back in Hogwarts because of Quidditch - she was a Chaser for Ravenclaw, and they got along fairly well in the beginning, but they only lasted a month."

Mira sat down next to George, stealing a sip of his beer, "Shorter than a month. She liked him well enough at first, but he bored her with all the Quidditch talk." She looked at Charlie and smiled, "They're just good friends is all."

Charlie turned to Mira and tried to change the subject, but Mira wouldn't have it, "Charlie, you know the twins are going to try to set you two up, even though they both know Leah would hex them to their deaths if they try to again -"

"Again?"

Mira grinned and called Leah over, who was now talking to Ron and Luna, "Hey Leah, tell us that story about how Fred and George set you up?"

Leah groaned and sat down across from Charlie, "Why would you remind me of that?"

"It wasn't even a date!"

"_She_ wasn't even your friend!"

Charlie almost spat out his beer, "_She_??"

Leah nodded, "It was a few months after I started at WWW and I hadn't gone on any dates in a while because I was busy with training, I had finally broken up with my first on-again, off-again Muggle boyfriend, and I hadn't attempted to seduce either twin, so my lovely bosses _automatically_ assumed I was gay!"

Charlie and Mira were laughing hysterically, but George looked indignant. "It was a valid assumption!"

"So what happened?"

"They convinced some poor, unsuspecting customer to get drinks that night, invited me along, and than left the two of us at the bar."

"We just wanted you to have a bit of fun!" George pouted and Leah laughed, "And I greatly appreciate it, Boss-Man, as long as you _never_ do it again!"

Mira dragged George to the bar again; she planned on getting hammered, leaving Leah and Charlie to talk. "Charlie, _please_ tell me about your dragons."

Charlie smirked, "Please, you don't want to hear about dragons, there's really nothing to exciting -"

Leah's mouth hung open, "Nothing interesting about dragons? Before I knew I was a witch, I used to read all sorts of fairytales about evil dragons, but I always thought that the dragons were somehow just misunderstood."

Charlie stared at her for a second, "I wish all people thought that way about dragons," he smiled, trying to hide his blush of almost being caught staring at her, "You wouldn't believe how afraid people still are towards dragons. They still believe all the hype, all the stores. And sure, dragons can be dangerous, but if you take the time to understand to them they can be really extraordinary."

Leah smirked and pointed at his arms, "Next time you try to convince someone who actually believes all the hoopla, you might want to cover those up."

Charlie laughed, "True. I guess it just bothers me that all this incorrect history that's written from one person's opinion, or because of one renegade dragon, still affects people opinions thousands of years later."

Leah sighed and nodded, "I know what you mean. It's even worse that _after_ the war, after we fought for freedom, to end racism, end prejudice between peoples, we still have to have a separate department for squibs, werewolves, goblins and vampires. And you wouldn't believe how difficult it is to try to bring new Healers into the department. That's the only reason they made me Head, I was one of three in the department."

Charlie shook his head, "You're clearly a very talented and gifted Healer, don't sell yourself short."

Leah laughed, "But what's your favorite dragon?"

Charlie talked for a while about his dragons, and Leah listened intently, asking him questions about all of the dragons. Soon though, Leah pointed out how sober they were compared to everyone else. Charlie laughed, "Another round?" They made their way to the bar and ordered another beer and decided to stay there for a while to get another drink.

Leah noticed an attractive woman eyeing her and Charlie, but particularly Charlie. She touched Charlie's arm lightly, "I think I'm preventing a few attractive ladies from approaching you. I would hate to be the cause for a loss of a few potential free drinks." She nodded her head across the bar to the other side.

Charlie chuckled softly and leaned in to whisper, "I think I'm getting a few glares from some guys too. How about I buy you a drink so at least you won't lose a free drink and good company."

Leah smiled, "Charlie Weasley, are you using your charm on me?"

Charlie leaned back and ruffled his hair, "Only if it's working of course."

"Well, seeing as I _always_ accept free drinks…"

Charlie laughed and waved the bartender over, ordering another round of drinks. Leah turned to lean against the bar, but a few seconds later quickly turned around again muttering, "Bollcks, bollocks, bollocks, bollocks."

"What?"

She turned to him, "Just go along with me, okay?" But before Charlie could reply, she had turned around again. "Danny??"

"Leah is that you?" A man, probably the same age as Oliver, Charlie assumed, gave Leah a hug. "What are you doing here? I thought you were in Mongolia."

Leah smiled, "I was, but than they transferred me to Germany, where I met my boyfriend, Charlie," her arm snaked around his waist, "Charlie, this is Danny, my first boyfriend."

Charlie stuck out a hand as his other went around Leah to rest at the small of her back, the material cool against his fingers. "Danny, it's a pleasure to finally meet you."

Danny nodded. At 5'10", he was clearly intimidated by Charlie. He turned back to Leah, "How long are you back in England for?"

"Just for the holidays." She laughed and looked up at Charlie, "Had to meet the family!"

Danny nodded, obviously upset and said, "Well, Leah, it's been great seeing you," he meant to give her a kiss, but was too afraid, "and if you have any extra time, we should catch up."

"Of course!" Leah and Charlie watched him walk away and she turned around quickly in Charlie's arm to take a huge drink. Charlie waited for her to finish before looking at her, expecting an explanation. "You know that on-again, off-again, Muggle boyfriend I mentioned earlier? That was him." Charlie nodded, waiting for her to continue. "He lived in my neighborhood, and he was older, and we would kinda date during the summers between my 5th and 7th years. He wasn't extremely intelligent, so I never told him I was a witch, just told him that my parents and grandparents had left me enough money to send me to boarding school. And than I had to lie and tell him I was working at a clinic in Mongolia to explain my move to the Wizardry world full-time."

"So why date him if he wasn't that intelligent and you didn't really like him?"

Leah sighed and took another drink, aware of how close Charlie was standing next to her, "Well, he was older, and the only kid in my neighborhood who wasn't on hard drugs."

Charlie was about to say something, but Leah held up a hand, "Don't. It's okay. I've lived to tell the tale, haven't I?" She smiled, "Thanks again for going along, but you didn't have to scare him half to death!"

Charlie laughed and they walked back to the table, their drinks in hand. They started to talk to Harry and Oliver about Quidditch (Charlie noticed that she treated Oliver no differently than she treated Harry or Ron). "Oi," Oliver said to Charlie, "you've never seen her fly? She's a terrific chaser!"

Harry agreed, "I always tell her professional Quidditch could you use a sneaky, faker like her, but she always refuses."

Leah rolled her eyes, "I'm not nearly as good as they think. And I seem to recall that a red-head Chaser would scare all the points for Gryffindor."

"Not _all_ the points, please!" Oliver hit Charlie in the arm, causing the four to laugh.

Leah was finishing her beer and had started to really feel the alcohol when all the others came back, Ron, Luna, Fred and George sitting down, but Hermione, Ginny and Mira tried to pull Mira up, "Come on! Come on! You promised!"

"Oi! Get me a drink first," she sat back down and turned to Charlie, "I'm not _nearly_ sloshed enough for this. If I'm not back in at least 20, come save me. No prisoners."

Charlie laughed and agreed as Leah took the shot of rum Mira brought her. "All right, all right," and she allowed them to drag her to the dance floor.

Ron and Luna had to leave, so the guys started talking about Quidditch in the glory days of Gryffindor, when Harry looked out at the dance floor, "Why do girls dance with each other?"

They all turned to look at the dance floor. Some techno, Muggle song was playing; the bass reverberated around the whole pub. Charlie watched as Leah danced, laughing and smiling with her friends one second and than get caught up in her the music and her dancing the next. Charlie wondered if there was nothing she could do. Even Hermione and Ginny stopped moving for a second to watch her move. Mira kept dancing, laughing and attempting to follow Leah, who saw and had to hold on to Mira falling over from laughing so hard.

George shook his head, "Those two are _always_ doing that - must be a Muggle thing."

"What?" Charlie asked, finally tearing his eyes off of Leah.

"Just wait-" the song changed abruptly and all the Muggles on the dance floor cheered, even the people at the bar laughed. "They always request some ridiculous old Muggle song and than dance about like fools."

Charlie watched as Mira and Leah, after jumping up and down did start to dance rather strangely. Hermione and Ginny joined those who were cheering and laughing, and yet some others started to dance like them. Charlie started laughing too as did Fred, Harry and Oliver, but George just shook his head. Charlie had to admit that the song was catchy - he couldn't understand a word of it, but he knew that it would have been difficult to dance to. He watched as Leah started to fist-pump the air in front of her, going around in circles as Mira began to thrust, until they both started laughing with everyone else. Leah than started jumping, her legs and arms open wide, getting closer and closer to the ground as Mira followed suit. Leah kept getting lower and lower until she was almost sitting on the floor, and the whole dance floor cheered. She jumped up grinning and dusted off her shoulders laughing, just as the song changed.

"Muggles," George sighed.

--

Fred left the guys to go join Hermione on the dance floor, afraid that if she was out there too long, some Muggle guy would try to hit on her. The other guys laughed, but when a guy started to even approach Ginny, Harry excused himself and walked to the dance floor.

Oliver went to the bar to get a drink and pursue an attractive blonde that was drinking by herself. Charlie chuckled and looked back out at the dance floor. Mira and Leah were still dancing by themselves, but Charlie noticed a few guys dancing around them, watching them closely. Charlie nudged George when he noticed one guy put his hands on Mira. George stood up, the alcohol making him perhaps not bravery, but more rash and grabbed Mira away from the guy, leading her to the other end of the dance floor. Charlie watched as another guy put his hands on Leah's waist - she didn't resist.

That was, until she turned around and saw it was someone she didn't recognize. She tried to dance away, but the guy stayed and started to move his hands around her body. Leah grimaced and shoved him lightly on the arms, not knowing exactly how drunk he was or how aggressive he would become. He kept his hands on her, pulling her waist towards him. The alcohol started wearing off and now she was getting fed up. Out of the corner of her eye she saw another guy approaching - she hated how drunk guys got once they saw a girl dancing alone. She pushed the guy away harder, and when he still refused to leaver her alone, she said icily, "Leave me alone."

"Why?" the guy asked cockily. Leah, growing impatient and fed-up, she stopped moving, and pushing his hands away replied through gritted teeth, "Don't test me."

"Why?" the guy tried to move her body.

Charlie stood up from the table and began to approach the dance floor, in case the guy tried something with Leah - from where he sat he could tell that Leah did not want to dance with the guy. But before he could even say anything, the guy was holding his nose with one hand and his stomach with the other. Leah had sucker-punched him. She started to walk off the dance floor and ran into Charlie.

"Guess I didn't need to save you." Leah smiled and took his hand, leading him to the bar.

"Why, Mr. Weasley," she said as she waved over the bartender, "you were going to come to my rescue?"

Charlie grinned and accepted the shot of whiskey Leah passed to him, "Seems as though you didn't need saving…"

Leah smiled and downed the shot, shaking her head, "Well, I love a good fight as much as anyone, but stay with me in case he comes back to try to fight me. He was pretty drunk."

Charlie agreed, and soon enough the guy walked over to the bar where Leah and Charlie were standing, holding his stomach. Charlie stood up to his full height, "Can I help you?"

"This your girlfriend?"

"Yes, is there a problem?"

The guy, looking up and down at Charlie and over at Leah who cocked an eyebrow in annoyance. "Next time you should keep another eye on her. She's a tease." The guy walked away and Charlie shook his head.

Leah laid her hand on his arm as he leaned against the bar again, "Thanks, Charlie," she smiled at him, her eyes meeting his and blushed. She laughed, lowering her gaze to the bar, "Ready to get really drunk?"

Charlie grinned, "Ready as always." They ordered two more shots of whiskey each and downed them quickly, laughing. "What was that dancing you and Mira were doing before?"

Leah covered her mouth as she laughed almost uncontrollably and Charlie soon joined in; it was contagious. "It was a ridiculous song from a few years back, and we always love to dance like idiots with ridiculous Muggle dance moves."

Charlie smiled looking at her again, the whiskey starting to hit him, "You dance pretty well."

Leah cocked her head, "Thanks - but only when I'm drunk," she smiled, "I'm pretty drunk now, want to dance?"

"Oh, no, I don't dance -" Charlie quickly downed a third shot of whiskey, knowing she was going to drag him to the dance floor.

Leah laughed and pulled him to the dance floor, "Come on, Charlie!" She found George and Mira who were laughing on the dance floor. Leah started moving to the music and grabbed Mira's hand above her hand, laughing. The whiskey and music started to hit him, and soon he was moving to the bass too. Mira and George started to dance with each other, both really drunk and Leah moved away from them as they started to dance more provocatively. She danced next to Charlie innocently and laughing, took his hands and started to sway her hips and moving her feet, trying to get Charlie to follow. She lifted her head up and smiled leaning in to shout, "Not bad, Mr. Weasley."

Charlie couldn't do anything but smile and kept dancing, trying to keep up with Leah. The song changed and Leah grinned as Mira and George came back over and Mira squealed. Apparently she and Leah liked this song. Apparently so did the rest of the Muggles as Charlie was shoved and pushed as more and more people got on the dance floor. Mira was still dancing with George, but suddenly Charlie was almost on top of Leah. She began to move her hips seductively and raised her hands above her head, lost again in the music.

Charlie noticed at one part of the song, all the ladies twisted lower and lower, only to rise back up, still dancing. Leah did the same, but after the first time Leah was knocked into Charlie. Her hands were now on Charlie's chest, holding on to his tie as she had tried to prevent herself from falling, and looking up into his eyes, her breath hitched, but regaining some composure, she started to move again. Charlie, the alcohol really hitting him now, realized Leah was trying to get him to dance with her, her hands still on his chest, pulling on his tie. His hand instantly went to her hip, which she was moving suggestively to the beat. Than she was twisting towards the ground again, and Charlie couldn't believe how low to the ground she got. She twisted back up, her eyes never leaving his. His one hand was back on her hip again, his other on the small of her back, and he was moving to the beat with her. But now she was turning around, her back up against his crotch, and she was moving again. He felt himself grow hard as the alcohol, the music and Leah got to him.

Leah felt it to and couldn't help but bite her lip and she continued to move seductively. The song ended and Leah turned around smiling, Charlie still holding on to her hips, "Thanks, Charlie," Charlie nodded, and was going to walk off the dance floor when a slower song came on and Leah grabbed his hand and pulled him back laughing, "Come on! One more dance!"

"Oi, I should really be heading home soon…" but he stopped when Leah had her hands around his shoulders, moving slowly to the music. Charlie put his hands around her waist, one resting on the small of her back, his fingers playing with the cool material.

She sighed and looked up into his eyes - he was a few heads taller than her, so she had to strain her neck, "Thanks again for helping me back there with Danny and that grade-A creep." Charlie nodded, not really able to speak. He didn't know what it was about Leah - he had danced like this with plenty of women, but with Leah it was different. Maybe it _had_ been the alcohol…

Too soon the song ended and Leah and Charlie walked off the dance floor to find that all of their friends had either left or were busy elsewhere in the pub. Charlie went to the coat-check to get their coats and they walked outside to find it snowing.

They walked for a little while, laughing about stupid things, still drunk, when Charlie announced that he should head home to the Burrow, "Unless you want me to walk you home? Or Side-Apparate with you?"

Leah smiled, her brown eyes shining in the street-lamp light and snow, "I actually don't live that far from here if you don't mind walking."

They continued to walk and when Charlie saw Leah shiver a little, having some problems with her heels in the snow, he put his arm around her shoulder, pulling her close to his body. "Thanks," she blushed, the alcohol wearing off slightly now, "I usually hate such kind, chivalrous gestures."

Charlie laughed, "An independent woman who wants no help from men because you've gotten along so far without it?"

Leah nodded, "Precisely." She sighed and Charlie stopped walking, putting his finger under her chin, "What is it?"

Leah tried to smile, "Nothing!" and when Charlie gave her a look said, "Is that bad? That I don't like when men try to help me or judge me just because I'm a woman?"

Charlie smiled, "No. If a man helps you or doesn't help you just because you're a woman he's obviously stuck in the wrong century. If you don't want or need a man, so what?"

Leah smiled, "Thanks, Charlie. In a very weird way, that makes me feel better." She laughed and they continued walking without any other problems.

They reached her flat building and not wanting to seem to forward Leah said, "Thanks again Charlie, I had a really good time - it usually sucks being one of the few people in that group who's single."

Charlie smiled, looking into her eyes, "I can understand, trust me. You've met my family, right?"

Leah laughed. They were standing very close to each other, but not wanting to have to deal with silence, Leah continued, "And I guess we're in the same boat with everyone trying to set us up, trying to get us to work more…"

"Yea…" Charlie was leaning in, his blue eyes sparkling, his light red hair wet with the falling snow, and Leah thought how attractive he really was.

He kept leaning down and moved closer to put his hand on Leah's back. Her eyes never wavered from his, and she leaned up, their faces inches apart. Closing her eyes, she felt Charlie's soft lips on hers. The kiss was soft and light at first, but Leah, putting her arms around his neck, pulled his head down towards her more, increasing the intensity of the kiss.

A few seconds later, however, realizing what they were doing, they both broke apart, and trying to ease the tension and handle the situation like adults they both started laughing. Leah grabbed on to his arm laughing so hard. "Merlin, Charlie I'm sorry, I must have been more drunk than I thought!"

Charlie laughed too, although he was slightly confused as to what was going on, "Me too. Listen, I need to go before Mum freaks out," he sighed, ruffling his hair, "the perils of living at home, if only for holiday."

Leah smiled and kissing him on the cheek, walked towards her flat building, "See you soon?"

He smiled and started to walk away, "Next Weasley family dinner?"

"I'll be the one with the scar salve."

--


	4. IV

Charlie woke up to the smell of his mother's cooking

Charlie woke up to the smell of his mother's cooking. Grinning, he sat up and pulled on a t-shirt and slipped on his shoes, "Morning, Mum, Dad," he greeted as he sat down at the kitchen table.

Mrs. Weasley seemed pleasantly surprised, "Charlie! I didn't expect you up so early!"

Mrs. Weasley smiled, pouring him a glass of pumpkin juice, "Do you have plans for tomorrow?"

"It's my holiday, Mum, I don't even have plans for today."

"Wonderful! You can help with my Christmas shopping tomorrow!"

Mr. Weasley's eyes seemed to smile above his paper at Charlie, "You mind helping me with some yard work this morning?"

"Sure, Dad."

Mr. Weasley grinned and set his paper down, "I boughta used and _very_ cheap Quidditch hoop and I want to set it up and than make it invisible so no one can see until Christmas."

"Dad, that's great."

He nodded, "I figured you kids and eventually the grandkids could use it, start sharpening their Quidditch skills early."

After the war, Mr. Weasley had been promoted to one of the Minister's, Kingsley's that is, advisors, but had refused to leave his former position. This extra money, plus the money Hermione, Ron and Harry had earned from their various awards had allowed Molly and Arthur to update and renovate their home and to buy more gifts. (After trying to refuse their money on various occasions, Molly and Arthur accepted it, putting it into a separate vault for the grandkids they knew they'd one day have).

Charlie helped his dad set up the hoop all morning and after making it invisible, came in for lunch to find Bill and Fleur sitting down to eat as well.

"Charlie, m'boy, how were drinks?"

Charlie smiled, "Fun of course, a very surreal experience," he smiled, thinking about Hermione and Ginny and briefly Leah.

The five adults chatted during lunch, Mrs. Weasley and Fleur about the baby and how the room decorating was going. "Charlie, Fleur and I have an appointment with the Healer in a little while, want to come with us?"

Charlie nodded, "As godfather, I would feel privileged," he paused, "and as Ginny's big brother, I _have_ to see her at least once in her place of work."

--

Charlie hadn't been to St. Mungo's since the War - but he shook his head; that was over with and here he was in St. Mungo's not worried or frightened or in pain - he didn't see any blood. Charlie followed his brother and sister-in-law to a room and was introduced to an older woman, Healer Sanchez. She ran what Charlie assumed were a few tests since he knew nothing of pregnancy Healing, and said that the baby (Fleur refused to know the sex) was healthy and doing fine. The couple grinned and the three Weasleys left the room to head back to the front desk.

"All-in-all, painless."

Fleur smiled, "Are you going to visit Ginny, Mira and Leah now?"

Charlie smiled, "As long as they aren't too busy - care to join?"

Fleur shook his head, "I need to go start dinner - you're coming, aren't you?"

Charlie grinned, "And miss a quiet dinner with my favorite older brother and favorite older sister-in-law? Never!"

Fleur and Bill smiled and said good-bye as Charlie replied, "I'll be over soon!" He stopped at the front desk to see where Ginny would be.

"Ah, she's on rounds now with her mentor, Healer Cooper, you can check her office…" she gave directions and Charlie nodded his thanks. He approached another wing, this one for Leah's Non-Magical Persons and Other Magical Beings Department and Magical Bugs department, and another desk. "Hi, I'm looking for Ginny Weasley and Healer Cooper."

"Name, please?"

"Charlie Weasley."

"Is Healer Cooper expecting you?"

"No, she's not."

The witch nodded and looking away from Charlie, pressed her finger to her ear and said crisply, "Healer Cooper?" Charlie waited to hear Leah's voice and was surprised the witch continued, "A Charlie Weasley is here to see you - should I send him in?" The witch nodded and taking her finger away from her ear turned back to Charlie, "Last door on your left."

Charlie walked down the long hall slowly, looking at the plaques next to the doors - there were some offices with small name plates and some with larger, and some of the rooms were patient rooms. Yet no one in the hall had as large a plaque as Leah did. Charlie stopped for a second to read the whole thing. Her full name was there, Leah Evelyn Cooper, and the year she got her license, four years ago. But there was something else on her plaque that Charlie hadn't heard at dinner, "Co-Founder and Strong Supporter of the Equality Act: To Enforce Equal Healing Practices on All Patients, Admitted to St. Mungo's".

He knocked on the open door and waltzed in, grabbing Ginny into a hug. "Look at you, you little Healing Protégé!" He turned to Leah who had stood up from behind her desk, her hair pinned back was smiling, her Healer robes opened slightly at the top. "And Leah, you failed to mention you co-founded a Healing Act!"

Leah smiled and waved her hand, "Oh, it was nothing, there were three Co-founders, and the other two are much more prominent."

Charlie rolled his eyes and smiled, "Hope I wasn't interrupting, but I was just at Bill and Fleur's appointment and figured I'd pop in and say hello."

Ginny grinned, "Just some mentoring stuff! I'm on training break."

"Training on a Sunday?"

"Trying to get in as much as possible before the holidays."

Charlie nodded and looked at Mira, "Do Head Healers get holidays off?"

She smiled, sifting through some papers on her desk. "I get off earlier than usual on Christmas Eve, but I have to come in for a few hours on Christmas," she sighed and smiled.

Charlie smiled back, "I _would_ feel bad, but you _love_ it, don't you?"

Leah flashed a quick smile, "It's not all bad being in charge."

Ginny, feeling like the third wheel, but pleased none the less, stood up, "I should probably head back - thanks again, Leah. I'll see you tomorrow."

Leah grinned, ""Oh, no, holiday shopping!"

Ginny laughed and gave her big brother a hug and kiss on the cheek, "Bye!"

Leah turned back to her papers, biting her lip as she became absorbed in what she was reading. Charlie coughed, smiling, trying to get her attention. Leah looked up, surprised and laughing said, "Sorry Charlie, I just got so caught up in this file," she looked down at it again and waved her hand at him, "please, please, sit down!"

He let her read the file for a few more minutes, watching her brow crease, her eyes darting along the page before flipping it over. She was biting her lip again, Charlie noticed, and he wondered if he would be able to kiss those soft, pink lips again. Sober this time. He shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts and said, "Interesting case?"

Leah nodded, not looking up. "I shouldn't really tell you, Healer-Patient Confidentiality, but Merlin. This wizard came to my department because he's a werewolf, but he really should be in Magical Creatures _and_ Bugs _and maybe_ even plants, we're not sure yet," she frowned, "he would be in one of those departments if he weren't a werewolf." She looked up at Charlie, her brown eyes meeting his light blue ones and he was surprised at how hard and intense they were. "As much as I love my department, I can't help but hate it. Werewolves, goblins and squibs _rarely_ have separate ailments or treatments - not enough to warrant their own department." She sighed, "Thankfully I'm also in the Bugs and Plants departments, but I'll have to grab someone from Creatures -"

"They must be okay with werewolves."

"Usually not _actual_ werewolves, but with bites or scratches," she trailed off, "Merlin," she grimaced as she continued reading the file, "this wizard must have had an _awful_ full moon to have run in to all these things."

"How did he make it here?"

"Thankfully someone found him and Apparated her to let someone know - they wouldn't touch the poor guy of course."

Charlie tried to smile, "You really love helping people don't you? All kinds of people."

Leah smiled wryly and Charlie, cocking his head to the side and smiled, continuing, "It's refreshing."

Leah became slightly sarcastic, "Because I work nonstop to help people?"

"Because you're obviously not doing it for the money. Or for the recognition," he paused, "you always wanted to be a Healer?"

"Even before I knew I was a witch, I wanted to be a doctor." She looked at her watch and cursed softly, "I have rounds," she paused and looked at Charlie, her eyes sparkling, "you have time?"

Charlie looked skeptical, "Depends…"

"Grab that robe," she commanded and picked up her wand and a few files, "you're my new intern if anyone asks."

--

Charlie followed Leah around for an hour and was amazed, but not really surprised, to see how compassionate she was with each of her patients, no matter their age, ailment, intelligence, wealth, or whether they were squib, goblin or vampire. After visiting a few patients who had ingested or been bit by rare and odd magical bugs, Leah looked at her watch, "I have to go and check on my research team and than check on the Wolfsbane Potion," she shrugged at Charlie's unspoken question, "it's my department, and I like to make it," she whispered, "and than that way no one notices when I make extra fro Remus."

Charlie laughed and thanked Leah for the tour and made to hand her the robe back. "Keep it," she smiled, "to come visit again. And I can show you things for those unwanted scars." She winked, her heels clicking on the floor tiles as she walked down another hall. Charlie sighed and ruffled his hair, she really was doing something to him. He made his way out of St. Mungo's, still thinking about Leah and only barely remembering to go to Bill's and Fleur's.

"That was a long visit," Bill chuckled when Charlie walked through the front door.

"Leah took me around St. Mungo's with her," he paused to pour himself some water, "Merlin, did you know she _always_ wanted to help people? And she makes the Wolfsbane Potion herself, probably a huge amount of it every time. She's so compassionate too with her patients, and she's not doing it for the money."

Bill tried to hide his smile, "Not _all_ Healers are money-hungry."

"No, but not all Healers work in the Non-Magical and Other Magical Beings Department."

Bill nodded, "Sounds like you two had fun…" he trailed off, watching Charlie stare out the window, slowly drinking his water, "I never asked you _exactly_ how last night was."

"It was fine, Leah wanted to hear all about the dragons," he paused, "she even said that when she used to read about stories of dragons when she was a child, she never thought dragons were evil, just misunderstood."

Bill laughed, "Seems like you guys got along."

Charlie turned around to face his brother, "Bill, I don't know why - well, I mean I _do_ know why, but Merlin, I think I really liker her. I mean, I've only known her a few days, but I mean, we both understand that we love to work."

"And she appreciates your work and your odd love of dragons."

Charlie ignored his brother's underhand comment and continued, "I - I don't know, I don't want to get too carried away, since I'm only here for a month anyway," he shook his head and turned around, "Where's Fleur? How can I help with dinner?"

And Bill knew that was the end of the conversation on the subject of Leah.

--

Leah slipped off her heels when she finally arrived, exhausted, back at her flat that night. She dropped her take-out food on the counter, and went to change into her pajamas. Before she could start to eat her lo mien, there was a knock at the door.

"Brought a DVD!"

"Come in, Mira, better be a Cary Grant film."

"Long day?"

Leah sighed and plopping down on her couch, taking a huge bite of her food as Mira slipped off her own shoes and sat down next to Leah, holding up 3 DVDs. "Ok, we got _Breakfast at Tiffany's_," Leah made a face - "You _know_ how I feel about that movie!" Mira laughed, "Is it the racism or that one quote, today?" Leah stuck out her tongue and Mira continued, "_Philadelphia Story_, or _His Girl Friday_".

Leah grinned and ate a huge forkful of her Chinese. Mira laughed, "_His Girl Friday_ it is, but only _after_ you tell me about your day."

Leah sighed, "It wasn't bad, just draining," she took a sip of her Muggle soda, "and Charlie visited."

Mira was terribly confused, "Oh?"

"No, no, that wasn't bad, that was _fun_ I guess, but," she groaned, "we kissed."

"What?" Mira hissed, "and you didn't _tell_ me? When?"

"When he was walking me home after drinks," she shook her head at Mira's unspoken question, "it was _just_ a kiss, and we were both drunk. I'm sure he barely remembers."

"And neither of you said anything to each other?"

Leah smiled, "Oh, Mira, you naïve little child, we're both adults, we don't need to make it awkward by talking about it."

Mira grimaced, "Funny. But you guys were fine today?"

Leah smiled, "Yea! It was fun - I showed him around and he seemed to have fun and it wasn't awkward at all."

Mira shook her head, "You're unbelievable."

"What?"

"You're an _adult_, I thought you'd understand!"

"Mira, what?"

"You _totally_ like him!"

Leah sighed, "Well, yea, I guess I do - Merlin, here's everyone trying to set us up and I set out to just be his friend, and now look, I _like_ him. Merlin, can't I be friends with guys anymore?"

Mira laughed, "Oh, come on, course you can. It's just that it's different with Charlie. You're both workaholics, but you both understand _why_ you are, better than anyone else."

"And he's genuinely interested in my work."

"And he's gorgeous -"

Leah laughed and threw a pillow at her best friend, "An added bonus."

Mira laughed, "So?"

Leah frowned, knowing what Mira meant. "I can't - and _no_ not because I'm scared, but because, well, he'll be going back to Romania in less than a month."

Mira nodded, understanding, "And a fling would prove disastrous -"

"Only because I know the _entire_ family."

"And nothing would be kept a secret."

"And poor Mrs. Weasley." Leah sighed, "So, Charlie and I will just be _good_ friends. I mean, we'll be the only two single people at Christmas, so we'll be thrown together a lot."

"Just don't get drunk," Mira said as she slipped in the DVD.

--

Ginny walked into her flat that night to the smell of spaghetti, "Hermione! You're cooking!"

Hermione laughed from the kitchen, "I got home early and I figured since you had a hard day of training."

Ginny gave her a hug, "Hermione! You're _too_ sweet!" She laughed, "And I'm guessing your day was good?"

Hermione nodded and seeing Ginny's grin, "And how was yours?"

Ginny set the table, "Charlie visited." Hermione cocked an eyebrow. "He visited _Leah_."

"Oh…" she saw Ginny's face and shook her head, "no, no, not you too! Why can't you all leave them alone?"

Ginny smiled innocently, "Whatever do you mean?"

"Ginny…" Hermione warned.

Ginny put up her hands, "I haven't done anything and I won't I barely need to - they barely noticed I was there. They obviously like each other -"

Hermione dished out the pasta, "And he's leaving in a month, so just _leave_ it. They might get more hurt if they start anything."

Ginny nodded, slightly defeated, "I know, I know, I just want them to be happy!" She sighed, "I'm going shopping with her in Muggle London tomorrow, so we'll see."

Hermione frowned, "You _know_ how she gets."

"I know, I know."

--

Leah left at the crack of dawn for St. Mungo's the next morning to get some things done before she and Ginny went shopping. Mira was going later that day with Fred to help him pick out something for Hermione and to help her with presents for Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. She got a few hours of work done when Ginny bounded in. "Ready?"

Leah smiled, "Actually, yea." Ginny was shocked. "I haven't gone shopping in Muggle London in a while."

Ginny grinned, "Me neither," she paused, "you don't mind stopping at some lingerie and dress stores?"

"Why?"

"Well, I want some new lingerie and I want to get Hermione some for Christmas," she laughed, "and I need a dress for Christmas."

Leah frowned, "Oh, _no_, we're wearing dresses?"

"No one told you?" she sighed, "Merlin forbid George tell you _and_ Mira. Yea, we're having a little party Christmas Eve - dressing up and all."

Leah sighed, "I'll need a dress too."

They walked around Muggle London, going in and out of different shops. Leah thought that she was pretty terrible at buying gifts; she had _no_ idea what to get anyone. Hermione didn't need any more books, Harry had enough Quidditch things and she had no idea what to get Ron.

She had at least decided on a large Muggle cookbook for Mrs. Weasley and an assortment of small Muggle gadgets for Mr. Weasley, all of which Ginny assured her he didn't yet have. She found Luna some bright and odd Muggle jewelry to add to her collection, and a small French perfume for Fleur.

They passed a baby store and Leah pulled Ginny in, "For Teddy! And I'm sure there must be something for Tonks too." They walked out a few minutes later with toys for Teddy and a cute and fashionable "baby-carrier-strap" as Ginny liked to refer to it, for Tonks.

They entered a bookstore next, and Leah grinned, heading to the fantasy section, pulling out a large book on dragons. "He doesn't have something like this, does he?"

Ginny tried hard not to grin, "You just met him, you don't have to get him anything."

Leah waved her hand, "It's on sale, I'll have to get him something else too," she bit her lip and walked away from Ginny, lost in thought. Ginny couldn't help now but grin.

Leah came back a few minutes later with the dragon book and a book about magic, which she knew Fred would enjoy. "What does Harry want, you think?"

Ginny shrugged. She was holding a book about ancient Egypt for Bill. "He's always _so_ hard to shop for - he never wants anything," she paused, "just like you, Charlie and Hermione. But Ron, Merlin, he's pleased with _anything_."

Leah laughed, "Maybe I'll get Ron a few CDs and maybe a CD player," and she laughed again at Ginny's confused expression, "a music player! Clearly he doesn't have one."

Ginny laughed, "Nope."

They left the store, their bags knocking together, "Can we shrink these? Please?"

Leah nodded and headed towards a public bathroom.

Their purchases now in their pockets, they headed towards a dress shop, Leah sighing audibly and said to Ginny, "I don't care if I have _no_ shoes that match, I _refuse_ to go shoe shopping."

Ginny nodded, already sifting through dresses, "Fine, fine." Leah sighed again and looked through the dresses, picking a couple to try on, not really sure if they would even look good on her or not.

The two girls tried on the dresses, showing them off to one another, laughing the whole time, until they both found what Ginny called the "perfect" dresses. After purchasing their dresses, Ginny dragged Leah to the lingerie store. Leah groaned at the sight of all the frills, bows and lace that adorned almost every bra and underwear in the store. "Ginny, why?"

Ginny laughed at her older friend, "I'm not going to force you to buy anything, but it's always nice to have lingerie like this, isn't it?"

Leah's mouth hung open, "But you always have us buy something in a store like this -" she glared at Ginny, who was looking at red bras with white bows, probably for Hermione, "you want me to buy bras on my own accord and you'll pretend it was _my_ idea," she gasped as it suddenly hit her, "so I would buy it with the intent of Charlie seeing! You _evil_, _evil_, girl!"

Ginny grimaced, "Merlin, of course not!"

Leah continued to glare, "You _know_ I know you're lying."

Ginny sighed, "Leah, I'm not going to push you and Charlie together, come on!" And Leah knew she was serious. "And I'm _done_ trying to get you to buy sexy lingerie, especially during Christmas," she paused, "unless I gift it to you."

Leah smiled, "I'm going to look in the sale section." She picked out a few bras and underwear, against her better judgment, that were on sale and went to pay. Ginny was already holding her bag, grinning.

--

Ginny and Leah left Muggle London a little later; Ginny was having dinner with Harry that night. Leah decided to stop at WWW before heading back to her flat. Maybe the twins or Mira wanted to get dinner.

She opened the door, the bell tinkling and was surprised to see Charlie behind the cash register, reading _Quidditch_ _Weekly_. "They're already putting you to work?"

Charlie looked up and smiled when he saw Leah in her dark grey pea coat and bright blue scarf, her cheeks pink from the cold, her hands full of bags. And she was wearing that brilliant smile that Charlie was easily getting used to. "They both had dinner dates and being the charming and caring older brother that I am, offered to close up."

Leah laughed, shrinking her bags to stick in her pockets before hanging up her coat and scarf. "Good thing I'm here to help you lock up than."

Charlie moved over to let Leah lean against the counter too. "No, no, I can handle it, go do whatever you had planned."

Leah smiled, grabbing the magazine out of his hands, "You're giving yourself too much credit, and I had nothing planned," she thumbed through the magazine and Charlie looked at her for a moment. She wasn't wearing any make-up from what he could tell, but than again, unless it was dramatic, he wouldn't have been able to - but she looked beautiful. He watched her eyes quickly scanning the pages, reminding him of how fast she had read the files at St. Mungo's. He glanced down at her outfit and tried to suppress a laugh. She was wearing a white t-shirt that had a duck that looked angry and was wearing clothes and a caption that read, "One Bad Duck" in blue block letters. She was wearing a thin navy cardigan over it with jeans. Charlie looked down at her feet and grinned at her bright turquoise shoes, "Nice sneakers."

Leah looked down, "Oh, thanks! I love bright sneakers," she laughed, looking at her outfit again. "You must think I'm trying to be some punk…" she laughed, blushing slightly.

Charlie smiled, "No, it's just different I guess, but why is that duck wearing clothes?"

Leah laughed again and setting the magazine down, turned to Charlie, "That's Donald Duck, he's a cartoon created by an American Muggle named Walt Disney -" Charlie shook his head and Leah continued, "You ever heard of Mickey Mouse? Well, there is this bunch of cartoon characters Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto - and Donald, who has this terrible temper. Anyway, they've been around for _ages_ and _every_ Muggle knows who they are. And there are Disney amusement parks for not just _these_ characters, but for the hundreds of movies the Disney Company makes. There are two in the States, one in France, one in Asia somewhere, but I plan on going to the one in Florida some day."

Charlie nodded, fascinated. "Muggles _never_ cease to surprise me. Do you have any of those Disney movies?"

"Not of Donald Duck, but he might be on TV, but I have other animated - cartoon movies that Disney and his company made." She grinned as his face lit up. "You could come over to watch them tonight," she paused, "unless you had other plans."

Charlie smiled, "None!"

Leah grinned, "You don't mind leftovers?"

Charlie couldn't help but smile, although he was torn, "Not if you don't." Here he was, trying to _not_ get attached to Leah, to just continue to be his friend, and here he was, going to her flat.

She smiled and looked at her watch. "We'll lock up in 20."

He nodded. There was an easy silence for a few moments before Charlie broke it; not to fill the silence, since it wasn't awkward, but to learn more about Leah. "You own a _lot_ of bright sneakers?"

"A few," she smiled, "when I was a kid, that's _all_ we used to wear," she laughed, "Merlin, some were _so_ atrocious, but they were _cheap_. I used to wear darker, more normal colors to Hogwarts, but all the other Muggle students thought I was trying to be cool." She shrugged, "I never bothered to explain."

"And the t-shirts?"

"I only wore hand-me-down graphic t-shirts when I was younger, stuff the other neighborhood parents would give me, but that was just a few. Otherwise it was plain colored t-shirts for me. But I _love_ graphic t-shirts now," she sighed, "it's almost become a problem, how many I own."

Charlie laughed, "How many?"

Leah blushed, "I can't even keep count." She tried to change the subject, "What did you do today?"

Charlie gave her a look but answered anyway, and Leah glanced at what he was wearing, since he had too, opted _not_ to wear the official WWW robes. He was wearing jeans with old, brown boots, but they didn't _look_ dirty or worn, they looked rugged. And Leah immediately slapped herself and continued to listen to what Charlie was saying, something about lunch with Harry and Oliver. "What did you do?"

"Stopped in at St. Mungo's early before Ginny took me Christmas shopping _all_ day in Muggle London, but thankfully we were done earlier than I had even hoped for since she had a fancy dinner with Harry."

"So she ditched you, eh?" He laughed, "Finish your shopping at least?"

Leah nodded, "Just a few things I have to pick up one day in Diagon Alley."

Charlie grimaced, "I _hate_ Christmas shoppning."

Leah laughed, "I don't enjoy it that much either. I'd love to come offer moral support, but since every Healer wants the holidays off," she sighed dramatically, "I get to live in St. Mungo's until Christmas Eve."

"Thanks for nothing," he smiled, "Fred said I could tag along with him and Mira tomorrow."

Leah looked at her watch again, "Time to close up."

--

Leah unlocked her door, flickered on the lights and went to go put her shopping bags in her bedroom, telling Charlie to make himself at home. He put his coat on the back of a large, cushion chair and walked around, examining her flat. It wasn't as big as the twins', but it was definitely big enough for just one person. The main room that he was in now had two large chairs, a couch, and a low, large table. He recognized the Muggle TV across from the couch, but it was _much_ bigger than the other ones he had seen. He didn't recognize the other silver and black boxes, so he walked past them to the kitchen. It was small, with room for only a small table with four chairs. From the kitchen he walked to the small hallway which led to Leah's room and bathroom. He almost walked into the bookcase - it was as long as the hallway and almost as wide - he could barely stand in front of it comfortably to browse the titles.

All of her Hogwarts books were there, all sorts of Healing books and a ton of Muggle doctor books. Another shelf was full of Muggle history books and yet another shelf of smaller, paperback Muggle books. He was still browsing the large shelves when Leah found him, standing awkwardly his shoulders hunched, legs bent, and head to the side, arms bracing the shelves. "It's not as difficult for me to read the titles," she laughed.

"I'd noticed."

"It's probably a fire hazard, but where else could I put all my books?"

"A library?" he joked and held up a Muggle book, _Ella Enchanted_?"

Leah blushed, "From my very early teenage years. Now come on, let's eat and watch that movie."

He nodded and followed her to the kitchen, "Do you _collect_ books?"

"You could say that. I go to old bookstores or yard sales and buy books - only ones I'd ever want to read. I haven't read all of those yet."

"Oh? For when you have free time?" he joked, taking the Chinese cartons she handed him.

"Precisely," she smiled, "if you think _my_ book collection is bad, you should see Hermione's. Or Mira's movie collection," she paused, "well, Mira and I have a _joint_ movie collection," she laughed at Charlie's confused face, "long story."

Leah led him back to the couch, laying all the food out on the table. "This is all still good, I promise - there's Chinese, a little left over pasta, half of a sandwich. Eat whatever you want." She stood up again grabbing what Charlie assumed was a DVD and put it in one of the silver boxes. "Ever heard of Peter Pan?" Charlie shook his head. "Ok, well he's one of my favorite movie and book characters - but this is the Disney version - the original play and book were a _little more_ violent and less, uh, happy."

The music started and Leah turned off the lights and grabbed some food, sitting back down on the couch. Charlie was already rapt with attention.

They watched the movie in silence for a time until Charlie asked, "So Muggles made this?"

"Yea, a Muggle wrote the original play and book at the turn of the century and than Disney made this movie in '53."

"And they didn't actually know about pixies or fairies or magic?"

"Nope."

"Amazing," and they continued to watch as Peter and the Darlings flew to Neverland. Charlie laughed at the pirates but was confused about the "Red Man", so Leah quickly explained the racism, but had to pause the movie entirely when Charlie wanted to know about these Native Americans.

Leah was amazed at how many questions Charlie asked and how intensely he was looking at her as he listened. His questions were so direct, but _very_ profound and Leah couldn't even answer some. "Do you want to borrow some of my American History books?"

Charlie thought, "Maybe. I _do_ have a lot of time on my hands for the next few weeks." Leah laughed and turned the movie back on.

At the end of the movie Charlie clapped enthusiastically, "That was _fantastic_! And Muggles draw those things and make them move - without magic?"

Leah smiled as she pushed a button the remote, turning the cable on, "Yep, it's called animation. So you liked the story?"

Charlie nodded, "I bet that would be fun, to never grow up."

Leah's smile faltered, "Yea, but, the whole point of Peter Pan and a lot of other immortality-like stories is that you _have_ to grow up, you _have_ to die, you _have_ to feel the passing of time," she sighed, "Disney made a sequel a few years ago where Wendy's _daughter_ goes to Neverland, but at the end, Peter goes to London and sees Wendy as a grown up."

"What?"

Leah nodded, "It was _terrible_. I bawled and I'm not afraid to say it - I knew it was coming and I just - oh, it's just terrible. I cried in a children's movie! But there was always something about Peter Pan that tugged on my heart-strings."

"That sounds awful - it is rather odd for a child's story."

Leah sighed, carrying the now-empty food containers to the garbage, "Do you want to borrow the original book of _Peter Pan_?"

Charlie grinned, "If you don't mind parting with it…" Leah went to the bookcase and without having to even scan the shelves, handed Charlie a worn paperback, their hands grazing.

Blushing from the accidental graze and mentally slapping herself, Leah said slyly, "I've read it a few times."

Charlie, who was also mentally kicking himself, replied, "I promise to take good care of it," and than slightly awkwardly continued, "well I should probably go, I mean, you must have to get up early."

"Oh, no," Leah found herself saying before she could think, "you don't have to go yet - I mean, it's still early," she smiled smally, "want some ice cream?"

Eyeing her carefully, Charlie smiled back, "As long as you don't mind…"

"Chocolate or cookie dough?" she laughed as she walked back into the kitchen.

"Chocolate, definitely." They sat at the kitchen table to eat their ice cream, when playing with her spoon and looking at Charlie said, "You know that _all_ your brothers and sister say that you're their favorite." Charlie let out a disbelieving chuckle. "Even the twins - you're tied for first."

"That's probably because they see me the most infrequently and so haven't tired of me yet."

Leah took another small spoonful, still staring at Charlie, making him squirm a little. "I don't think that it's. I think people are just naturally drawn to your personality, your charm. You support your family tremendously, no matter what - the twins told me that you were the only original supporting family member for their career choice. And you're the most understanding and you _seem_ to have the best temper," she smiled crookedly, "or maybe have the most _control_ over it."

Charlie laughed, "For a redhead and a Weasley, I'm the least fiery."

Leah shook her head, "No - look at the passion you have for your job, for your beliefs," she smiled, "you're fiery, just not temperamental."

Charlie eyed her again, not exactly sure what to make of her observation, but Leah laughed before he could think too long. "I'm sorry, I just tend to notice things like that - I didn't mean to get so awkward or so personal."

Charlie smiled, "You sure you're not one of those Muggle shrinks?" He laughed, "You are pretty observation - I guess I've just always been the mellow one, trying to keep the peace between the siblings - maybe that's why I like dragons so much."

Leah grinned, taking another spoonful of ice cream, "I didn't mean to judge or pry or anything."

Charlie shook his head, "Just being observant that's fine," he paused, "mind if I ask a question?"

"Only fair."

He paused, not wanting to upset her, but curious all the same. "Why are you spending Christmas with us and not your uncle or whoever? I mean, I don't mind, it's just that you're not dating any of my brothers or anything and -"

Leah nodded and frowned slightly, "Well, my uncle and I don't particularly get along," she paused and looked Charlie right in the eye, "now, if I tell you the short version of my life story, you have to _promise_ not to say 'sorry' or give me _any_ pity. Agreed?"

"Agreed."

Leah began to tell Charlie her tale of her childhood, her formative years, of how she moved in with her aunt and uncle after her parents died in a car accident. How, even though they lived in a terrible, dingy neighborhood, they were happy: until her aunt died two years later from cancer. How her uncle became distant, cold, unloving to her and turned to alcohol, cocaine, crack, heroin, whatever he could get his hands on, to make him feel better, take away the pain. How her uncle refused to believe and became terribly angry over her first Hogwarts letter, until she received tons of letters everyday, forcing him to believe. How every summer she would come home, and say less than two words to her uncle, and instead would spend all of her time working or in the library. How holidays were always spent at Hogwarts, how her uncle had probably not noticed that she had graduated and left his flat. Until, of course, she had come back a few years after graduation to try to force him to get help for his addictions.

"That was a bad idea," she continued, Charlie rubbing his fingers on the back of her hand lightly, encouraging her, "he got even more angry, hated me for getting involved. Her blamed me for Aunt Rebecca's cancer, even though he was the one who smoked." She sighed, "So after that, we haven't really talked."

Charlie started to say, "I'm sorry," but he caught Leah's glare, so said instead, "So, holidays…"

"I usually work and get drunk, but last year I spent it with Mira and her dad, which was nice," she laughed, "so this will be my first Christmas spent with more than two people."

They sat for a few minutes in silence, Charlie trying to think of what to say to Leah, who although didn't look sad, looked slightly forlorn. He looked at the clock on the wall and than lightly rubbed his fingers on the back of her hand to get her attention. "Hey, I should go, let you get some sleep," he said quietly and stood up, taking her hand to pull her up. He wrapped his strong arms around her, her head against his chest. He leaned his head down and whispered, "I'm sorry I made you talk about it, but I'm glad you did," he paused, still holding her, "and I promise you this Christmas will be fun." He loosened his grip so he could look her in the eyes. Her eyes still looked too sad, missing their usual spark and intensity. "I'm really sorry - your uncle doesn't deserve you - but you're stronger now, driven. And you've got a ton of people who love you."

He kissed her on the cheek and dropped his arms completely, smiling smally, "Thanks again for the movie and the book. See you soon." He went to grab his coat and as he opened the door Leah called out softly, smiling, "Thanks, Charlie."

Charlie smiled and left, closing the door behind him, leaving Leah tired and confused: how could she _not_ like him now?

--


	5. V

Mira opened her eyes; there was a sliver of sun peeking through the curtains

Leah had a tough time focusing on some of her easier cases the next morning when Ginny came in. "Leah?"

"Hey - hey Ginny."

Ginny sat down, "You all right?"

Leah nodded, "Yea, you know what? I am, I just, man, I'm such an idiot."

"What?"

"No - nothing, I was just worrying about something trivial and stupid." She shook her head she _was_ fine. She and Charlie could be friends, _were_ friends. He was just being understanding last night, a good friend. She smiled at Ginny, who still looked concerned. "Time for rounds?"

--

Bill woke up early that morning, careful not to wake his wife, and crept quietly downstairs to make himself breakfast. He was pouring himself some tea when there was a tapping on the window, and he recognized Fawn, the new Burrow barn owl.

He opened the small slip of paper and let out a quiet laugh when he read the single line:

I'm falling for her.

--

The night before Christmas Eve, Charlie knocked on the door to Leah's flat, hoping that Ginny was right, that she _had_ left St. Mungo's at 8. She opened the door and he started babbling on before really looking at her "You were right, the book was so different, but so much better -" he paused, taking in her appearance. "What happened?"

She opened the door more, allowing him to enter, but didn't say a word. Her face was paler than usual, her lips etched into what look liked a permanent frown - even her brown eyes seemed permanently sad, although Charlie was relieved to see that her eyes weren't red - yet. He had a terrible urge to hug her, comfort her, protect her from whatever had happened, but he resisted, not wanting to startle her or anger her with his "chivalry". She looked so fragile…

He whispered this time, "Leah, what happened?"

Leah walked towards the kitchen and Charlie followed, shedding his coat on the couch and placing the book on the table on the way over. She sat at the table and whispered, "I have a half-brother," Charlie sat down abruptly, shocked. "I've never told anyone because he was much older and ran away when my parents - his dad - died," she frowned even more than she already was. "He was 15 and just left, I tried writing letters to him, asking him why he left me, but they never got to him because I never knew his address. He wrote me after he turned 18 - he had gone to the states." She picked up the letter that lay on the table and thrust it at Charlie, still not meeting his eyes. "I never forgot him, no, I couldn't - I hated him too much. He just _left_ me. First my parents, than him. I always thought he would come back for me," she laughed bitterly, the sound startled Charlie. "And now he _dares_ to get in contact with me…" she stopped talking and looked at Charlie, "Read it."

Dearest Leah,

I know it's been years and I know you probably hate me by now, if you didn't already. I know you probably haven't forgiven me for leaving you with Uncle Jack, so I won't beg you anymore. And I know that you've probably tried to forget about me, erase me from your memory so I can't hurt you anymore. I know baby, I know. And I don't blame you. You know I wouldn't write to you unless it was terribly important…

I don't know if you ever fulfilled your dream of becoming a doctor, but I hope you did, for your own sake, but now also for mine. My son, Eddie, has diabetes and we can't afford any of that fancy medicine or anything he needs. And a mechanic doesn't get any health insurance. And my baby girl, Laura, has got terrible asthma and maybe some other medical problems that the doctors can't confirm without more medical tests, but we can't afford her inhalers or tests. Lee, if you are a doctor, I know you can't take the time from your busy schedule to come visit, but if you haven't got a family of your own, if you wouldn't mind helping us out…

I put in pictures of the kids so you wouldn't think I just wanted money for a fix, like I knew you would…

Please help us, lil sis.

Yours,

Edward

Merry Christmas

Charlie didn't say a word, but the paper shook in his trembling hands. This Edward, Leah's own flesh and blood, had hurt her, made her sad and bitter, had probably made her depressed when she was younger. And Charlie wanted _nothing_ more than to _hurt_ this Edward, strangle him, bring him back to London so Leah could hex him. But he looked at Leah, who was playing with the hem of her large t-shirt, what Charlie assumed was her pajamas and his heart tightened. Quietly, he got out from his chair and knelt in front of her chair. She lifted up her eyes, still hunched over, and Charlie hugged her. His strong arms wrapped around her seemingly frail body, his shoulders straining against the fabric of his t-shirt. She sighed deeply, her head resting on his shoulder: he could feel her breath on the nape of his neck and he shivered slightly. "Leah," he whispered, but she shook her head, her breath hitching and he felt something wet hit his shoulder.

Lifting her up was as easy as he thought it would be. He wrapped his arms tighter around her, lifting her slowly off the chair. Standing, he went to lift her legs, but she wrapped her arms tighter around his neck, burying her face in his shoulder, wrapping her legs around his middle. Like a child.

And then she was crying. Charlie sat down on the couch, hugging her tighter and she swung her legs around to lay across his lap, still crying. He stroked her hair, lightly brushing it away from her eyes and whispered, "Hey, hey, Leah, it's okay. You don't have to do anything, shh." His one arm tightened around her still, "He doesn't deserve anything from you, Merlin, I just want to break his neck."

Leah lifted her head and hiccupped. Then she laughed, hiccupping again, looking Charlie in the eyes, her face so close to his and he wanted nothing more than to kiss her - her lips, her tear-stained cheeks, her slightly puffy and red eyes. She smiled smally. "No, _he_ might not deserve anything, but his kids? My niece and nephew? He knew I couldn't refuse them their health, their lives."

She fidgeted slightly and pulled a photo from the waistband of her pajama pants and held it up to Charlie. He looked into the blue eyes of two blonde children, an older boy and younger girl who it looked like was starting to get her first teeth. "As much as I hate him, as much as I blame him, I can't hate his kids. He ran away because he was afraid. He couldn't be responsible for me _and_ himself - he was only a kid too."

Charlie nodded, still lightly caressing her back, "Sounds like you've been telling yourself that for a long time." She looked away from his eyes, but Charlie lifted her chin up, forcing her to look at him again. "It's okay to be mad."

She sighed. "I was - I am - but being mad at someone for 17 years? Takes up too much energy, so I stopped thinking about it, stopped being angry. That's why I never mention it to anyone and -"

"I won't tell anyone, I promise." He smiled, still searching her eyes, "You okay?"

She nodded and laughed, "Merlin, Charlie, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to dump all this on you…"

Charlie hugged her again, "I'm glad you told me, Leah," he leaned back again, "do you know what you're going to do?"

She nodded and untangled herself from Charlie, standing up, "Sorry," she blushed and walked back to the kitchen, grabbing Muggle writing supplies. Charlie followed, "You want me to go?"

Leah looked up from her seat and Charlie's heart tightened and she said quietly, "Do you mind staying and going with me to the Muggle post? I don't trust myself to actually go through with it."

Charlie nodded and watched her write a short note:

Edward -

This is for your kids, my niece and nephew, not for you. When they're older, tell them Aunt Leah loved them, even though she was never able to meet them.

-Leah

Charlie watched her rip a small piece of paper out of a small maroon book. Before he could ask she said, "It's the Muggle way to give money to people," she thought for a moment, "but he'll need _dollars_, not pounds." She sealed the envelope and asked Charlie to wait while she changed her pants. A few minutes later they were walking to the Muggle post, bracing themselves against the cold. Charlie felt Leah's hand find his own, their fingers intertwining. He looked down at her and she smiled, "Thanks again, Charlie. Really. It mean a lot."

Charlie smiled back, his thumb caressing her hand lightly and didn't bother to say anything, just squeezed her hand. They walked in silence for a few minutes when it started t snow softly. Charlie looked up at the sky, the moon shining brightly, "It's a beautiful night." And he smiled to himself, the feel of her small hand in his larger one, knowing that their scars were probably touching.

--

They walked back to Leah's flat after Charlie had to encourage and convince her a few times to _actually_ mail the letter. Leah invited Charlie back in for a drink to thank him, but he politely declined. She turned her back to the door, staring into Charlie's deep blue eyes, his red hair falling right above his eyebrows. Her eyes darted to his lips, a small smile playing there - Charlie was always ready to smile. And at that moment, Leah wanted to kiss him - he was so understanding, so caring, so utterly wonderful. So she did. She kissed him. She stood on her toes, pressing her hands against his chest and kissed him fully on the lips. Charlie was caught off-guard at first, but soon he was kissing her back, pressing his body up against hers, mentally cursing their coats.

Before either realized, Charlie had pushed Leah up against her door, his hands on either side of her face to deepen the kiss. He pulled his face away slowly, breathing heavily and kissed her cheek, her eyes fluttering open. He took a small step back and said quietly, "I should probably go," he pushed some of her hair behind her ear, "get some sleep."

She nodded, but before he could walk away, she took his hand and hugged him around his middle, her head could barely reach the bottom of his shoulder. "Thanks, Charlie, really," she whispered into his chest.

Charlie nodded and said into her hair, "See you tomorrow."

--

Leah cursed the sun when she woke up the next morning. Groggily, she shuffled into her kitchen, grabbed the largest mug she owned and poured the coffee, deciding to drink it black. She needed as much caffeine as she could get.

She had had a _terrible_ time sleeping the night before, thinking about Charlie and Edward. She groaned - it was Christmas Eve day and she had yet to pack for the party that night. She groaned again - and Mrs. Weasley was _forcing_ her to stay the night. In the Burrow. With all of the Weasleys.

She downed her cup of coffee, and poured herself another, walking into her room to pack all the gifts and her clothes, laying her dress out on her bed to put on before the party.

She put on her clothes and left for St. Mungo's. A very _long_ day at St. Mungo's.

Leah was the only one at St. Mungo's from her department, only one from Bugs, and one of two from plants. Ginny and all the trainees had off until after New Year's and Mirs had off until the 26th. Even Healer Lang wasn't in. Leah smiled, starting her rounds, walking the quiet halls. She liked St. Mungo's when it was quiet, when she was one of the few Healers present.

Charlie woke up later that morning, groaning as he rolled over and saw the sun peeking through the curtains. He walked downstairs desperately hoping that Mrs. Weasley had tons of things planned for him to help with to keep his mind off…he sighed to himself. His Mum wasn't in the kitchen, but there was a heaping plate of piping hot breakfast food and a note saying that she would be back around 2 and that he could help her set-up and cook then.

Charlie sat down and ate his breakfast. There went his plan of having his mother distract him so he didn't have to think about Leah. And how he wanted nothing more than to protect her, even though she clearly didn't need protecting. She was a _strong_ woman who didn't need anyone, especially men. He smiled to himself, remembering what she had said about chivalry. Last night, even though she had seemed so worn, so fragile, he knew that had he not been there she still would have been fine. She didn't need anyone, she didn't need Charlie, but she had accepted it. Had it been any other girl who had received a letter like that, under those circumstances, he knew they'd be crying for hours, would have still had bitter, angry thoughts towards Edward, wouldn't have helped his kids.

He sighed, shoving more eggs in his mouth: there went his plan of not thinking about Leah.

Thankfully Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny all arrived at the Burrow shortly thereafter, hoping for lunch. They talked with Charlie about the "soiree" and how Neville was coming with his new girlfriend.

"Well, they haven't officially told anyone they're dating…"

"But they are the two youngest professors at Hogwarts."

"New professor?"

Ron rolled his eyes, "Geez, Charlie, where have you been? She teaches Potions."

Charlie smacked Ron upside the head, "Oh, I'm not sure, Romania, where I don't get daily Hogwarts updates."

"She was a few years younger than Fleur, they used to be friends."

"She's _such_ a sweet girl, shy, except with her students."

"Perfect for Neville," Charlie agreed. Even though he barely knew Neville, only meeting him during the war, but he couldn't wait to meet the girl who "wasn't" his "girlfriend".

--

"Healer Cooper?"

Leah looked up from her desk and smiled, "Healer Douglass?"

The man sat down, "Leah, darling, why are you working on Christmas Eve Day?"

"Steve, youknow better than to call me darling," she smirked, "and why are _you_ working on Christmas Eve Day?"

Steve leaned forward, "Because I knew you were, baby. Come on, let's go get a drink, get drunk, have a good time." He cocked any eyebrow and Leah's stomach lurched at his attempt to be suave.

"Steve, why can't you leave me alone? You _know_ my policy on dating co-workers."

"But, Leah, sweet, we don't work in the same department. And come on, love, don't you want a man, a strong man to take care of you?" He stood and made to come around the desk, but Leah was too quick.

And pissed. She had her wand drawn and pointed directly at his jugular, her pen in her other hand like a dagger, pointed at his arm, her knee ready to jerk up at any moment. "Steve, I don't know _how many_ _times_ I've told you to leave me alone - to leave _all_ of the women here alone, but you've _really_ gotten on my last nerve. And I am _not_ in the mood today. At all." She lowered her voice, her wand pressing harder against him. She watched his eyes searching frantically for an escape. "So, Healer Douglass, I suggest that you leave immediately. And if you _ever_ pull this crap again, I _will_ puncture your lung with this pen."

Steve nodded and Leah let him go, laughing to herself as she watched him scurry away. She sighed and sat back down. She hated letting her emotions, her anger, get the best of her, but Steve _had_ set her over the edge. It was just unfortunate that he made another attempt after her letter from Edward, her kiss with Charlie. She picked up another file. Only another hour before she had to leave to get ready.

--

Charlie was fixing his maroon and gold Muggle tie as he walked down the stairs, nearly running into Fred. "Oi -"

"Shh! I spiked the drink bowl!"

Charlie rolled his eyes, "Fred, there is no drink bowl."

Fred's eyes sparkled, "There is now!" and ran up to his room to stash whatever alcohol he was trying to hide. Charlie continued in to the kitchen where everyone was already dressed, talking and eating the small "finger foods" that Hermione helped Mrs. Weasley make. He walked back to the drinks and sure enough, there was a small bowl of a white beverage. "Eggnog," Bill said from beside Charlie, "I made Mum get it and than convinced Fred to put extra alcohol in it."

Charlie nodded, understanding, "Because Fleur doesn't want you to drink."

Bill grinned, "What she doesn't know won't hurt her!"

Charlie laughed and poured himself a drink. Bill laughed, "Alcoholic much?"

Charlie rolled his eyes, "It's Christmas. I'm one of two single people.

Bill nodded, not wanting to bring up the letter Charlie sent him, so instead raised his glass, "Power to you."

Charlie smiled and made his way to say hello to Remus, and Tonks and to hold Teddy. "Look who's gotten so big!" He lifted Teddy up and down as he giggled, "Hi Uncl Chawie!"

Charlie laughed and said to Tonks, "Either someone's really good with names -"

Tonks feigned innocence, "Honestly, Charlie…"

Charlie laughed and pulled something from his pocket, handing it to Teddy whose eyes lit up and little hands wrapped around the miniature dragon. "Now, Teddy, this one doesn't blow fire, but it moves like a real Norwegian Ridgeback."

"Tanks Uncl Chawie!" Charlie set him down and he ran over to Harry to show his godfather his new toy.

Charlie stood up, "It's perfectly safe, trust me. Mum approved."

Remus laughed, "Between all of his aunts and uncles, this kid will be _spoiled_."

"Until everyone else starts having kids too."

"Charlie, how's the Reserve?"

"Oh, you know Remus, same old, same old. Raising dragons, training dragons," he laughed, "how is it to be working for the Ministry? Any problems?"

Remus grinned, "Between Kingsley, Hermione and Harry, I'm surprised the ministry and the rest of the Magical World isn't _sick_ f hearing about werewolves. And Leah - you meet Leah yet?" Charlie nodded, "is doing tremendous work at St. Mungo's -"

"And I think she and Hermione might team up for some new laws and things," Tonks said, "I heard Hermione mention it before."

Charlie heard a knock on the front door and when no one else noticed it, he excused himself to go answer it, thinking it was Neville and his new girlfriend. He opened the door and there was Leah, standing on the front stoop, the soft porch light casting shadows around her. "Happy Christmas Eve!" she grinned and Charlie slightly taken aback, grinned back. "Happy Christmas!" and ushered her inside. "Let me take your coat."

She was unbuttoning her coat and taking off her scarf, trying to avoid looking at Charlie's outfit, which would lead to his body, or worse, his face. And than his lips. She stopped unbuttoning her coat, "Oh, where should I put my bags and gifts?"

Charlie led her upstairs to Ginny's room where all the girls would be sleeping. Leah found the last empty bed, "We can bring the gifts down to the tree." She finally took off her coat, putting it on the bed as she began to enlarge her bags and gifts.

Charlie's eyes widened when he finally saw Leah's dress and her face in the light. Her hair was down and straight, with a poof and Charlie noticed the subtle blonde hue that was reflected in the light. She was wearing eye make-up, but not as much as Ginny was. Her dress was a strapless white dress that hit at her mid-thigh and baubled out slightly at the bottom. It had large navy circles all over it. 'Polka-dot' he thought it was called. Her legs looked amazing too - but Charlie tried to refrain from staring at them for too long. She was wearing silver necklace, but Charlie couldn't make out what the charm was. It was her lips that caught his eyes. They were a fire-engine red instead of their usual light pink. They looked even more kissable now…

Leah watched Charlie out of the corner of her eye as she enlarged the gifts. He looked terribly _dashing_ in his khakis, white oxford and Gryffindor-color ties. He didn't need a full suit or tux to look like Cary Grant or James Bond. He looked _better_ than them; his hair slightly ruffled his blue eyes as deep as she'd ever seen them. She tried to refrain from sighing contently.

Charlie shook his head and scooped up some of the gifts, grinning sheepishly, "You look - fantastic."

Leah blushed slightly, "You don't look so bad yourself," she frowned slightly, "Charlie, I'm really sorry about last night, I'm usually not that much of a mess -"

Charlie smiled to ease the tension, "I know, Leah. And it's really okay, you have nothing to apologize for. Now, come on," he smiled bigger now, making Leah smile too, "let's go celebrate your first Christmas with the Weasley's!"

They laughed and walked down stairs to put the gifts under the tree and than walked to the kitchen and living room, where everyone already was. Charlie put his hand on the small of her back and whispered, "I promise it will be fun," he encouraged and than standing straight again, "as long as Mum doesn't mention _all_ the couples…"

Leah laughed as Charlie groaned and whispered as they entered the room, "We'll stick together."

--

Leah laughed as she was bombarded with hugs, kisses, compliments on her dress from her friends, a compliment on her lipstick from Ginny and endless teasing from the twins. She finally managed to squeeze away to thank Mr. and Mrs. Weasley for their hospitality before making her way to Remus and Tonks.

Tonks laughed at Leah's exhausted expression, "You'd think they haven't seen me in ages!" she sighed and shook her head, giving Tonks and Remus kisses, "Tonks, Professor."

Remus rolled his eyes, "I'm not even going to bother to correct you, Ms. Cooper. Let it be my Christmas gift to you."

Leah laughed, "Oh, no fair! Did you get my letter?"

Remus nodded, "You take _too_ good care of me, and you _never_ let me repay you."

"Where's the little tyke? Holding him is payment enough."

"With his godfather, of course," Tonks laughed, "he had to show him the toy dragon Uncle Charlie gave him."

Leah frowned, "I'll surprise him later…" Leah looked around and saw Mira by herself by the drinks, "Excuse me, you guys, I need a drink," she smiled, "Tonks, Professor…" and walked over to Mira.

"Hey," she whispered, pouring a drink next to her best friend, "guess what happened today?"

Mira shrugged, "Did you finally snog Charlie?" Mira looked at her friend when she didn't hear an immediate retort. Her dark grey eyes grew wide, "_Merlin_ you did! When?"

"Shh!" Leah smacked her arm, "That's _not_ what I wanted to tell you, but yes, last night, I was upset, he came over to return my book, it was _nothing_ but don't say anything."

Mira nodded, "Fine, fine, but…how was it? Give me details."

"Mira…" she pleaded and continued, "Steve came by my office today."

"Oh, no," she groaned, smoothing her silver dress, "how did that go?"

"Well, I was a little confused about last night and worried about tonight, so I didn't have much patience, so -"

"Oh, _no_."

"I didn't _hurt_ him. Threatened him. Frightened him."

Mira laughed and took a sip of her drink. "He did deserve it."

George walked over to pour another drink, "The eggnog is spiked, just so you know."

Leah rolled her eyes, "I expected as much from you."

George was about to retort when Bill walked over, "Actually, I asked them to - Fleur doesn't want me to drink."

Mira and Leah both laughed, "That's terrible, Bill!"

Bill shrugged, "It's Christmas with the Weasleys, one needs a constant buzz to stay sane."

Leah didn't know whether to laugh or cry. She looked up at Bill who was looking out towards Charlie and said to Leah, "Hopefully she won't, but there _is_ a chance Mum might give Charlie a hard time."

Leah sighed, "Again?"

"She doesn't give up."

Leah looked slyly at Bill, "What do you want me to do, Bill?"

Bill smiled, "You know me too well, Leah," he became serious, "look, I don't want to make you or Charlie uncomfortable, but you guys are friends, right? So just make sure you talk to him a lot, you know, give Mum the impression…"

Leah sighed, "That shouldn't be too hard; we are the only single people." She glared at Bill, "This isn't some elaborate scheme to get us together?"

Bill laughed, "And face Charlie's wrath? Never."

--


	6. VI

Charlie woke up to the smell of his mother's cooking

Soon everyone was sitting at the kitchen table, which Charlie and Mr. Weasley had expanded so that everyone could fit comfortably. Mrs. Weasley had assigned seats for everyone, which Leah thought was odd since everyone was going to sit next to their significant other anyway. Leah was surprised, therefore to see that she was sitting _across_ from Charlie and in between George and Hermione. Charlie cocked his eyebrow at Leah, obviously surprised as well, and she had to cover her mouth for a moment before she could compose herself and stop laughing again.

The only noise for a moment was the clatter of utensils as everyone began to eat. Leah broke this relative silence. "Mr. Weasley, Mrs. Weasley, I just want to thank you _again_ for inviting me for Christmas - except for last Christmas when I spent it with Mira, I've only spent Christmases alone. So this is _by far _my _biggest_ Christmas."

"Oh, Leah, dear, zat's terrible!"

"Leah, why didn't you invite yourself sooner?"

"Why didn't you invite us for Christmas drinks??"

"Leah," Mrs. Weasley intervened between all the chatter, "you're always welcome in our house, and please, my dear, for all you've done to help Ginny and Mira, and Remus to keep the twins inline at the office -"

"Hey!"

"-it's the least we could do! The more the merrier!"

Leah smiled, "Thanks. And really, thanks again, I'm sure this will be my happiest of Christmases!" she snuck a quick glance at Charlie and took a bite of her mashed potatoes.

The twins were finishing up a hilarious story at Ron's expense when Ginny said to Mira, "Did you get your dress for the charity event?"

"What charity event, Ginny?" Mrs. Weasley asked.

"Oh, Mrs. Weasley, every few years St. Mungo's holds a type of charity ball where all the Healers, board members and insanely wealthy patrons go to donate money for the hospital, eat, dance."

"And drink," Leah said sarcastically, "the most expensive champagne money can buy."

"I take it you don't like these events," Charlie said smiling. Leah resisted the urge to stick her tongue out at him.

"Leah's the only one who's been to one - when she was in training…"

"It's just a lavish event that St. Mungo's _has_ to hold to keep the board, the patrons and those who donate massive amounts of money, happy," she sighed, "it's not for the medicine, for the research."

Ginny smirked, "Leah's just mad she has to give a presentation."

"Two, actually, and _yes_ because I _know_ that these people aren't going to care about my work, my findings, aren't going to support the cause."

"You might be surprised," Ron spoke up.

Leah shrugged, "Perhaps."

Ginny looked back at Mira, "Get a dress yet?"

Mira shrugged, "No, I'll wait until after Christmas…"

Ginny smiled, "Great, we'll go shopping, Leah can come too."

"Oh, sorry guys, I already have a dress…"

Mira frowned, "Don't you _dare_ lie Leah, I _know_ you don't - you have to come with me and Ginny."

Ginny grinned, "Perfect," she paused, "Leah, who are you bringing?"

Charlie noticed Leah's fingers tighten around her knife, "No one," she replied calmly, trying to appear nonchalant.

"Leah, you have to take someone!"

There was an uncomfortable silence, as everyone noticed that this could escalate quickly. Leah was about to say something and the twins were both going to intervene, afraid of what Leah was going to say, but Charlie was quicker. "Ginny, she doesn't have to bring someone if she doesn't want to - she's a professional woman who has accomplished more than anyone else at this table in half the time, without the help of a man. And I'm sure the board members and patrons, no matter how small-minded and conservative they are, they won't judge her accomplishments on the basis of her love life."

Everyone was in silence, stunned at Charlie's words. Ginny stuttered, "Uh-ri-right, sorry, Leah, I didn't mean…"

Leah nodded and turned to Charlie, who continued to eat, not noticing the stares the rest of his family was giving him. He looked up at her and she smiled and mouthed, 'Thank you'.

Remus coughed to interrupt the tense silence, "So, Hermione, I heard you and Leah may team up?"

Hermione smiled, grateful to change the subject, "Well I heard about her board and the success of her department -"

"And since Hermione is technically almost a full-fledged senior lawyer," Leah smiled.

"We decided that if we teamed up, we would have a better shot at making a difference. There's still so much prejudice, mistrust," Hermione sighed.

"And if we pool our resources, we could make shake things up," Leah smiled.

"We're gonna start after the holidays, as long as Leah as time for one more project."

Everyone laughed, except for Leah and Charlie, who attempted to smile, but no one noticed how fake their smiles were.

--

The rest of dinner continued smoothly: everyone shared funny anecdotes about work, Hogwarts, and each other. Bill was sharing a terribly funny story about Charlie's first crush at Hogwarts. "Bill, _no_, you _promised_ you would never tell this story."

The twins were eating it up, "What year was she?"

Bill grinned wolfishly, "Head girl."

"Oh, no!" Hermione covered her mouth in shock as Charlie shook his head.

"He used to follow her around, go to the library when she did, eat when she was" he laughed, "a great little stalker he was."

Leah was laughing now too. "That _poor_ girl! She must have been terrified!"

Charlie glared at Leah as Bill continued, "She _was_ a bit put off - but soon Charlie saw that she was hanging out with this one particular boy. So he got worried that she liked this other boy more than him -"

"Did she even ever give you the time of day?"

"Yes - she tutored me a few times in -" Leah smiled at Charlie as she covered George's mouth before he said something inappropriate. Charlie understood, "No, George, in potions. So we were _friends_."

Bill continued, "So she and this boy started dating, so what does Charlie do? Writes her a poem!"

Leah and Mira covered their mouths, but they started laughing hysterically, their entire bodies shaking. Even Mr. Weasley and Fleur were laughing too.

Charlie tried to defend himself, "I was a kid!" to no avail.

Bill recited the poem from memory as everyone laughed, clapping. "Charlie, what a _beautiful_ poem!" Leah teased "I hope that wasn't your _last_ poem!"

"Oh, yes, Charlie! I hope you write poems to all your crushes, your girlfriends," Fred let out a small yelp when he saw Charlie's glare. Everyone laughed.

Mrs. Weasley smiled, "Speaking of girlfriends, Charlie," everyone was caught _completely_ off-guard and turned to Mrs. Weasley, fearful of what she was going to say next, what was going to happen, "I heard Kara Hadley is returning from Belgium, got a job here in England, maybe you could take her out to dinner. I told her mother you'd be free next week…" Mrs. Weasley looked at Charlie, smiling, apparently unaware of what she was doing, the fury she was bound to cause.

Leah looked at Charlie, his fist wrapping around his fork, his scars white against his red fist, his face twisting and contorting, trying to suppress his anger. Wanting to prevent anymore arguments, and wanting to do for Charlie what he had done for her earlier, decided to say something to Mrs. Weasley. She nodded subtly at Bill and turned to Mrs. Weasley, "Oh. Mrs. Weasley I don't want to seem rude, but Charlie asked me out to dinner next week."

No one could describe the way Mrs. Weasley's face changed, going from surprise to confusion to understanding to pure glee in a matter of seconds. "Oh? Charlie?"

Charlie, his mouth opened, looked at Leah, who winked and back to his mother, "That's right. Asked her a few days ago, didn't want to say anything, get everyone's hopes up in case it doesn't work out, you know," he paused, "sorry Mum."

Mrs. Weasley grinned and turned to Leah, "But why _wouldn't_ it work?"

"Oh, you know, Mrs. Weasley, we both work so hard, and we live so far apart, that sort of thing."

"And maybe we'll just be better off as friends, Mum."

"Right!" Leah looked back at Charlie, who smiled, and Leah knew _just_ how thankful he was.

Dinner continued, Kara and Mrs. Weasley's inappropriateness forgotten. But Mira continued to eat, wondering if they were trying to convince Mrs. Weasley or convince themselves.

And Bill smiled to himself. His not-plan had already worked better than he hoped.

--

Mrs. Weasley ushered everyone into the family room once dinner was over, refusing help from anyone. Remus, Tonks and Teddy left soon after, since they had to put Teddy to bed before Santa Clause came. Teddy went around saying goodnight to everyone, including his "Leeee."

It was a while before Charlie could finally talk to Leah alone. He winked at her and made his way to the drinks, Leah arriving a few moments later. She looked around and smiled, "This is very covert-ops considering we have a date next week."

Charlie laughed and pulled her up into a bear hug, her feet lifting off the ground. Leah laughed and his Charlie's arm, "Charlie Weasley, put me down!"

Charlie laughed and set her down. "You don't know _how_ much I owe you."

Leah smiled wryly, "I think one dinner, right?"

Charlie grinned again, "Merlin, _thank_ you - not only from my mother, but from that girl. She's terrible."

Leah rolled her eyes, "Why? Unattractive or something?"

"How little you think of me! No, she's pretty enough, but she _hates_ dragons and only ever wants to talk about gossip and things. Terrible bore."

"She hates dragons?" Leah asked incredulously.

"Hates them - is _afraid_ of them, thinks they're unsanitary, all that nonsense."

Leah winced, "Did your Mum think you'd fall in love with her and than stop being a Keeper too?"

Charlie nodded, frowning, "That's probably what she was hoping for, yea," he shuddered.

Leah smiled and looked out at the family room, everyone drinking, talking, having a good time. She took her drink in one hand, and slipped her other arm through his. "Come on, Mr. Weasley, let's go pretend that we like each other, make everyone believe we were planning on going on a date."

Charlie smiled and they walked into the family room, knowing he wouldn't have to pretend.

--

Neville Longbottom and his "friend" Jenna Olsen arrived while everyone was still drinking. Jenna was introduced to everyone, and Charlie noticed that she _was_ shy, but seemed comfortable around Neville and Fleur. Neville was soon chatting animatedly with Harry, Hermione and Ron.

Bill ambled over to Leah and Charlie, who were finally discussing _Peter Pan_ "Very good display before you two."

Leah rolled her eyes, "Just helping a friend out, Bill -"

"And _listen_, big brother, I know everyone probably knows it was all a scam, but to keep Mum off my back…"

Bill nodded, "I got it, I got it. But you know the twins…"

Leah grimaced, "That's why we decided to just go along with the whole thing - actually go on the date, pretend we like each other, yada yada and than when Charlie has to leave -"

"Yada yada yada?" Charlie interrupted.

"Uh, right, it's a _Muggle_ thing."

Bill nodded, "I guess that's as good a plan as any, but you know Mum'll give you a hard time."

Charlie frowned, "Yea, we know."

Leah grimaced, "Bollocks."

"What?"

"The charity ball…"

Charlie shook his head, "We'll worry about that later, when it gets closer to the actual ball."

Leah smiled, "Agreed," and stuck her hand out to shake as Charlie laughed. She then excused herself to go talk to Neville about Magical Plants.

Bill turned to Charlie, his mouth open, ready to say something, but Charlie shook his head, "I know, I know."

"Know what, little brother?"

"That this won't end well."

Bill sighed, "I don't understand why you guys just don't snog and get over it - you both _clearly_ like each other…"

Charlie groaned, "Don't you _see_ Bill, we can never work out - I would never force her to choose me and leave St. Mungo's, and I know she could never do the same…"

Bill sighed, taking a large sip of his eggnog. "And Apparating every night to England?"

Charlie rolled his eyes, "Come on, Bill, you know how tiring and straining that is."

"Bollocks, this won't end well."

--

Ginny had convinced Mira to bring out her "Muggle music player" to play some Christmas music so those who wanted to, could dance. Leah was talking to Charlie again, eating a slice of pumpkin pie when Mira came up to her arm, "Sorry Charlie, mind if I steal her for a moment?"

Charlie nodded and went to talk to Ron and Leah looked at her best friend questioningly, "What's going on?"

"Ok, _what_ is going on with you and Charlie?"

Leah feigned innocence, "What ever do you mean?"

Mira rolled her eyes and whispered threateningly, "Quit trying to fool me, Leah, come on, I _know_ you two didn't have a date planned - _what_ are you two doing? You're _going_ to get hurt."

"Mira…" Leah sighed "we _know_ what we're doing okay? It's just so his Mum doesn't give him a tough time, come on, you _know_ that. And what do you _mean_ I'm going to get hurt?"

"Leah, you're my best friend and I love you, but sometimes you are _so_ daft. I know you like him - as _more_ than a friend - and _don't_ even try to deny it."

Leah winced, "Mira, you know I don't _mean_ to, I _do_ just want to be his friend, it would be better…"

Mira tried to smile, "I know - and I think you're doing an okay job, but Leah, if you _like_ him, you need to do something. Even if it's only for a month."

Leah laughed, fakely and took a drink, "I feel like such an _idiot_, such a _girl_."

Mira laughed, "Leah dear, don't worry, you're _not_ acting like your typical girl," she paused, "do what you want though - but I figured I should get my two cents in when I could."

Leah smiled, "Thanks. You think Mrs. Weasley bought it?"

"Completely."

--

Leah was still talking to Mira when George cut in, wanting to dance. Mira rolled her eyes and agreed, laughing, leaving Leah by herself until Charlie walked up behind her, sticking his head on her shoulder, making her jump. "Merlin, Charlie!"

"Jumpy, are we?"

"When someone sneaks up on me like that, yes!"

Charlie shrugged and stuck his hands in his pockets. "Seems like we fooled Ron at least too, along with Mum." Leah laughed as Charlie continued, "Ron was always rather _daft_ anyway."

"Maybe Luna too?"

"Not sure, but I doubt she'll say anything to Ron. And obviously the twins aren't fooled."

"Or Mira."

"Bill."

"Hermione, probably."

"Ginny too."

"Hmph. As long as your Mum doesn't find out to harass you anymore."

"True, true," eyes wandered to where _everyone_ was dancing. "What is with my family and dancing recently?"

Leah laughed, "Must be a hobby they picked up - don't Romanians dance?"

"Oh, you're just _hilarious_ aren't you?" He grabbed her waist playfully, pulling her to where everyone else was dancing. "Come on, Ms. Cooper, we're dancing."

"_Oh_, commanding, are we? A bit bossy. Is that your Dragon Keeping voice?"

Charlie grinned as he turned Leah around, taking her one hand in hi other hand rested on her hip, right over her dress' pocket. His eyes twinkled, "No, no, my Dragon voice is _much_ more commanding, louder too. Everyone would get too scared if they heard it, it's too frightening for people," he was whispering gruffly in her ear and she shivered.

"I'm not frightened easily, Mr. Weasley."

He laughed, "Maybe not, but trust me, everyone else would be too startled," he paused and looked into her brown eyes. "Another time," he promised.

Leah nodded and looked away from his eyes and finally listened to the music, some Muggle Christmas song she didn't recognize. Charlie noticed her faraway gaze and asked softly, "You okay? Too much," he paused, thinking of the right word, "Christmas?"

Leah looked back up and smiled, seeing the genuine concern reflected in his eyes, "You're much too nice to me, Charlie, helping me to explain why I wanted to go stag to the ball, understanding why I work so much, making sure I'm enjoying my first big Christmas, helping me mail that letter." She sighed and before she could think about what she was saying, finished, "You're just perfect, aren't you, Charlie?"

Her eyes widened in embarrassment, her cheeks flushing pink when she realized she'd said it out loud, "Oh, Merlin - the twins must have put a lot of Firewhiskey in the eggnog, what I meant to say was, um, uh, you're a great guy, uh, um, bollocks."

Charlie chuckled to himself and lifted her chin up with his finger, forcing her to look up at him again. He smiled lopsidedly, "No, no, I _like_ perfect. I think that suits me rather well," he said jokingly.

Leah rolled her eyes, relieved he wasn't going to make a big deal out of it. She cocked an eyebrow, looking at Charlie, still dancing, "And?"

"And what?"

Leah threw her head back and laughed and Charlie joined in too, "Fine, fine, yes, you're _wonderful_ too, rescuing me from Mum and all that."

Leah smiled and nodded, "That's better, Charlie."

"I'd prefer Mr. Perfect."

Leah laughed, "Oh, certainly, Mr. Perfect."

The two continued to laugh at Charlie's new nickname, still dancing when Mr. and Mrs. Weasley walked over. "You two look like you're having a _splendid_ time."

Charlie twirled Leah around, laughing, "Yes, Mum, a _marvelous_ time."

"Well," Mr. Weasley said before his wife could make a scene, "we're off to bed - don't stay up too late."

"Night, Mum, Pop."

"Happy Christmas, Mr. Weasley, Mrs. Weasley."

Leah laughed into the crook of Charlie's shoulder and soon Charlie was laughing again too.

Neville and Jenna left soon after Mr. and Mrs. Weasley went to bed, saying that had to see Gram early in the morning. Bill and Fleur went to sleep after that: Fleur was exhausted and Bill was getting slightly drunk.

Charlie and Leah stopped dancing for a moment decided to sit on the couch, since it was getting late and everyone was dispersing to go to bed. Charlie and Leah laughed as they plopped down on the couch. "So, now what's the Weasley Christmas Day tradition?"

Charlie smiled, "Well, all the presents are at the foot of everyone's bed in the morning, just like Hogwarts. But, no one usually opens them until after breakfast, as long as they can restrain themselves, which is always a difficult feat for Ron. Than Bill and I usually get up earlier than everyone to make breakfast, you know, to give Mum a break."

Leah smiled, "That's terribly sweet of you two. And it's usually just you two?"

"Because we're always the first ones up."

Leah laughed, "Well, I'm always up early too if you guys want some help…"

Charlie grinned, "The more the merrier - as long as you can cook. Ginny tried to help one year…"

Leah laughed, "Nothing extravagant, but I can cook well enough, yes."

They were silent for a moment, watching the twins and Harry dance with their girlfriends. "Harry's going to propose to Ginny soon."

Leah smiled, "That's terrific! I know she's been dying to get married…"

Charlie nodded and than thought for a moment, "Who do you think will propose first? Fred or George?"

Leah thought for a second, "Fred. Hermione will want to get married, make it all official, you know, all the benefits and the like that come along with marriage."

Charlie nodded, "And Mira doesn't want that?"

"No, not that Mira doesn't want that, she just doesn't need it. She doesn't need the official title, the special privelages and all that marriage brings along. As long as she and George are happy living together, having kids, whatever, why change things with getting married? They can still have everything they want and not need to be married. She'd be happy getting married when she's 50, as long as she's happy. But if George wants to have a lavish wedding in ten years or elope tomorrow, she'd do it to make him happy."

Charlie nodded, "So Mira's a bit more lax and progressive, and Hermione is a bit more conservative?"

Leah nodded, smiling, "Look at you and your elegant and simple way of talking. But yes, that's it, basically. But I think George and Mira will get engaged after Fred and Hermione get married."

"To quiet Mum."

"Precisely."

Charlie smiled, "I like Mira's way of thinking, keeping things simple."

Leah smiled, leaning her head back against the back of the couch, "I'm just going to rest my eyes," she whispered, her breathing slowing.

And Charlie smiled too, closing his own eyes.

--

Mira and George were the last ones dancing in the living room when they noticed Leah and Charlie asleep on the couch. Mira nudged George to look - Leah was resting against Charlie's chest, his arm around her shoulder. George grinned as he and Mira were walking out of the room and "accidentally" walked into the wall with a resounding thud, waking Leah.

Leah blinked, and sitting up and noticing everyone was gone, nudged Charlie. "Wh-what?"

"Everyone's gone, Charlie."

"Oh -" he paused and sat up. "One last dance?"

Leah rolled her eyes, "Dance? Charlie, come on, everyone else is asleep, we should go to bed too."

Charlie pouted, standing up, "Come on, come on, one more!"

She gave him and let him pull her off the couch. He put both his arms around her waist, holding her close, her arms around his shoulder. They were quiet a moment. "Why a lion?"

"What?"

"Your necklace," Charlie whispered quietly, moving his hand to finger it lightly, his finger brushing her bare skin briefly, causing her to involuntarily shiver.

"Oh, um, it was my, uh mother's favorite animal - she lived in Africa, grew up in South Africa and than worked with a non-profit organization on reserves and things to do research on lions. You know, fertility, behavioral things, diets, how to stop poachers, that sort of thing. She was a scientist and an activist for animals and the local African people," she paused and Charlie interrupted softly.

"You don't have to talk about it, if you don't want to."

Leah shook her head, "No, I've been telling you everything else about my life, haven't I? I feel…comfortable telling you."

Charlie smiled smally, "You sound like her, you know, different and varying job descriptions."

Leah smiled, "Thanks," she paused and continued, "she met my dad while he was backpacking around Africa after his divorce from Edward's mum, picking up random oddjobs, whatever ones he could. He hadn't gone to University or anything, didn't have much money, but he and my mom fell in love," she sighed, "but he made her come to England, since he still had Edward to take care of, and he wanted to start a family with my mum." She sighed again and looked down from Charlie's eyes, instead looking directly at his shoulder, "She had to give up her job, but she used to take me to the zoo all the time, to show me the lions, teach me about them. Even though they were so dangerous, so unpredictable sometimes, she loved them. She was fearless."

Charlie smiled, "Just like her daughter."

Leah raised an eyebrow, "Oh, come."

"What? Taking on the Ministry and the Wizard Community at large to help Heal and get better, fairer laws for Werewolves, Vampires and Goblins, wanting to see and interact with Dragons, agreeing to go to dinner with a Dragon Keeper."

Leah smiled crookedly, "I wonder what Mum would say if I wanted to kiss a Dragon Keeper, before said date."

Now Charlie was smiling too, staring into Leah's brown eyes. They flickered to her bright-red lips, "I think she'd be proud," he whispered.

Leah nodded slightly and without another word, she lifted herself on her toes, meeting his lips. This kiss was nothing like the night before; this kiss was tender, more cautious. But soon Leah's arms were pulling his face towards hers, her one hand on his chest, pulling at his shirt to pull him closer. He pulled his face away for a moment to look at her one more time, her bright-red lips swollen from the kiss. He didn't know _what_ it was, but she did _something_ to him. He kissed both her cheeks, than her lips again, parting his mouth slightly. Leah saw the opportunity and took it, deepening the kiss, drawing him even closer to her.

His one hand, still on the small of her back, pressed her closer to him, nearly crushing her into him. He could feel her smile against his lips and he couldn't help but smile too. He pulled back slightly again and pushed her hair away from her right shoulder. Leah's eyes closed as Charlie ever so lightly kissed her neck, her collarbone with feathery-light kisses. He wasn't sure she even felt them until she shivered. He raised his head to kiss her lips again and his hand skimmed down her arm on to her hips. Her hand was roaming his chest now, feeling the strong muscles underneath. Leah thought for a second about tearing his shirt off, but she still had enough restrain.

Charlie knew that if this continued much longer, he wouldn't be able to help himself, and he knew that now was not the time, not when his entire family was upstairs sleeping, not before their first date…

Leah must have been thinking similar thoughts, since they both pulled apart slowly, flushing. Leah put both her hands on his shoulders and looked into his eyes, "Hmm," she muttered, smiling.

Charlie grinned, "Hmm is right, I've been waiting a while for that."

"Me too - against my better judgment."

"Me too. Now what?"

Leah smiled lazily, "Time for bed," she laughed softly at Charlie's pretend glare, "we see how this all plays out - we go along with the charade for your Mum."

"And see how the month goes."

Leah's smile faltered as Charlie turned off the lights, "Let's not worry about that." Charlie walked Leah to Ginny's room and kissed her lightly on the cheek before turning to walk away, but Leah grabbed his tie and pulled him back. Before he could react, she kissed him fiercely on the lips, "Night. Happy Christmas."

Charlie grinned, "Happy Christmas, see you for breakfast." She nodded and slipped into Ginny's room. She fell asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow, her lips etched into a smile.

--


	7. VII

Mira opened her eyes; there was a sliver of sun peeking through the curtains

Charlie woke up early the next morning eager to see the sun. He smiled to himself and stretched quietly so as not to wake the twins. He slipped on his slippers and shrugged on a loose grey long-sleeve shirt over his pajama shirt. He grinned at the pile of presents at the foot of his bed and quietly went downstairs to make breakfast.

He heard soft chuckling from the kitchen, and found Bill, stirring the contents of the bowl by hand as Leah looked on, sipping from her mug and laughing. "Bill, have you ever stirred pancake batter by hand?"

Bill grinned, "Nope, but it sure looks like I know what I'm doing, huh?"

Leah rolled her eyes and took another sip. Neither of them noticed Charlie leaning in the doorway. He wondered how she still looked so beautiful in her big, grey sweatpants and tie-dye shirt, her hair pulled back into a carefree ponytail. She looked so simple, yet so captivating.

"You're letting Bill cook without magic?" He finally walked in and Leah grinned, handing him a mug.

"Well, well, look who's finally awake."

Charlie stuck his tongue out at her, like a child and took a mug from her. "Want me to do eggs, per usual?"

Bill nodded and flicked his wand to continue stirring the batter. "Charlie makes a mean egg."

"In large quantities of course," he nodded gravely.

Leah fake pouted, "Don't I get to help at all?"

The brothers looked at each other, reminding Leah very much of the twins. "Bacon," they said together. "Sausage too," Charlie finished.

Leah nodded and the three laughed as they cooked, Bill extravagantly flipping pancakes higher and higher, and Charlie poking him with his wand to try to make him drop a pancake, as he whipped the eggs.

Soon everyone started coming into the kitchen, groggily wishing everyone a "Happy Christmas" and blindly searching for coffee or tea.

Breakfast was eaten mostly in silence, except for the compliments to the "chefs" who bowed their heads in thanks, laughing.

"Ronald!" Hermione said disgustedly, "Can't you chew _and_ swallow?"

"Your presents will still be there, Ron," Ginny muttered, rolling her eyes.

Everyone laughed as Ron fled the kitchen up to his room to begin opening his presents. Everyone else started to leave too when Fred and Hermione offered to do the dishes. Charlie lagged behind as Leah was the last one to leave. They stood at the bottom of the stairs and Charlie played with the bottom of her tie-dye shirt where it met with the rolled up waistband of her sweatpants. "Even in pajamas, you look beautiful," he whispered, looking into her eyes. Since last night, it felt wonderful for Charlie to admit what he had been thinking and trying not to think, for days.

Leah smiled, "Who knew you liked tie-dye so much, Mr. Weasley?"

"When do you have to leave?"

"Later, but I'll be back for dinner."

Charlie nodded and rested his forehead against hers, "Than I shan't make you wait any longer to open your presents," he kissed her lightly and briefly on the lips.

She grinned mischievously, her eyes sparkling, "I'm not used to so many presents, so I can wait a little longer…" her arms snaked around his waist and he groaned softly.

"Merlin, Leah, what am I going to do with your? Fred and Hermione are -" but he didn't get to finish because Leah was kissing him.

"Shut up," she mumbled against his lips. His arm wrapped around her back and his other hand cupped her face.

He pulled away for a second, his thumb caressing her face, "Come on, we can't do this here, when everyone's awake, they don't think we're snogging yet, just going on a date soon."

Leah nodded looking up into his eyes, "This is only going to get more confusing, isn't it?"

Charlie rested his forehead against hers again, "Fraid so. Especially since I'm leaving at home," he whispered, wriggling his eyebrows, making Leah laugh.

"Well," she said huskily, "I know _one_ thing I'm not confused about…snogging you," she reached up to kiss him quickly - yet deeply - and then bounded up the stairs to open her presents, Charlie's laughter floating up after her.

--

The other girls were already opening their presents when Leah walked in. "Leah, why would you get me a book on Magical Plants unless," she hesitated and looked up at Leah, her eyes hopeful, "oh, Merlin, does this mean…?"

Leah shrugged her shoulders and grinned, "I'm not at liberty to say…"

Ginny leaped off her bed and hurled herself at Leah, "Merlin, thank you, thank you, THANK you!!" The girls continued to open their presents, thanking each other and than going to shower and get ready for the day. Leah continued to open her presents, savoring every second. Even at Hogwarts she didn't get this many presents for her birthdays from her friends.

She laughed when she saw what DVDs Mira gave her, _It Happened One Night, When Harry Met Sally… _and _Batman Begins_. She grinned when she opened Luna's present, a book that only she would have been able to find, an old book on giant, troll and goblin ailments. Leah could just tell from looking at it that she would get a few laughs out of it. But it was the thought that counted.

She opened Charlie's present last: she hadn't done it on purpose, it was just the way the presents were placed. Or at least that's what she was telling herself. It was a book on Ancient Remedies, entitled _Alexander and His Remedies: Macedonian, Greek and Persian Remedies for Scars, Boils, Fevers and Other Diseases_. Leah grinned: this would have been a difficult book to find in a bookstore, especially for a wizard in a Muggle bookstore. There was a smaller package underneath the book, and Leah opened it carefully. It was a tiny ceramic dragon and according to the small slip of paper, it was a Hungarian Horntail. Leah stroked the tiny ceramic dragon with her finger, smiling. "Best Christmas ever."

--

Charlie was the last of his brothers and Harry to open his presents since they just _ripped _theirs open. Charlie opened Leah's slowly, surprised that she had even gotten him a gift, even though he had gotten her one. He tore open the wrapping, revealing a Muggle book on dragons. He smiled as he flipped through the different fairytales and dragons. He smiled and noticed a long, skinny box. He opened it to find a Muggle tie in navy and lime-green stripes with a note attached:

Charlie, Happy Christmas. Thanks again for _everything_. I hope you put this tie to good use in Muggle bars in England, Romania and abroad, if you ever take a vacation…Leah

Charlie smiled at the note and shook his head. He knew what he was wearing to their date.

He was still grinning when he walked back downstairs after showering, to read his new book in the family room. He sat down next to Mira who was reading a book on Wizards and their relationships with Magical Creatures. She noticed the book he was holding and his smile. "Looks like someone's having an extra-lovely Christmas."

"Looks like someone's being sarcastic."

Mira smiled, "I'm assuming Leah gave you that book and I'm assuming you two snogged last night."

Charlie chuckled, "George failed to mention how astute and observant you were," he paused, "and blunt."

Mira shrugged, "What can I say? It's a gift," she paused, "but seriously. I saw her today. You two definitely snogged and you're definitely _not_ pretending to like each other."

Charlie sighed, "Merlin, you're even better than Bill and the twins, aren't you?"

Mira smiled, "I like to think so," she was whispering now, "and don't tell anyone, but I totally knew George liked me and I totally liked him, but I tried to fight it, like you and Leah, but I gave in. And I'm glad I did, Charlie."

"So…"

"Charlie, I think you two would work well together, I just think you two need to figure out how to make it work after this month."

"Mira, look, I know you're trying to help, but we're just going to see how this month works out, you know? Maybe we won't even work well together as anything _but_ friends."

Mira nodded and smiled, "Sure, sure," and went back to reading her book.

--

Leah was in her office about to head down to check on her research when there was a knock on her door. She opened it and without even a chance to acknowledge who it was, she was simultaneously picked up off the ground and being kissed. She let out a small gasp and smiled against her partner's lips, knowing that there was only one guy who could pick her up like this with no difficulty, especially recently. Her feet found the ground again as Charlie set her down, "Well, this is a pleasant surprise."

Charlie grinned as he watched her walk back to her desk. "I got bored at home, thought maybe you were bored and I wanted to thank you for the gifts."

Leah smiled as she put her files back down, "And I want to thank you for _mine_. Where did you ever find that book?"

Charlie looked sheepish now, "A Muggle bookstore. I saw that you liked Muggle history and I found that book and -" he stopped as Leah stood right in front of him again.

"Charlie, that is _impossibly_ sweet of you."

Charlie grinned, putting his arms around her waist, "What can I say?" Leah kissed him, slowly this time. He pulled away a little later, "I hope I wasn't interrupting, by the way."

Leah smiled lazily, "Just have a few things to check up on, make sure my research team is doing their job, you know," she took the files off her desk, "come on then."

--

Charlie arrived back at the Burrow a little while later, grinning like an idiot. "Went to go see Leah I take it?" Bill asked when Charlie walked into the kitchen to make himself some tea.

"A man can't go out for a while and come back to his family at Christmas and be _happy_?"

Bill smiled, "No."

Charlie laughed, "I went to visit Leah at St. Mungo's figured she'd be bored, wanted to thank her for her gift."

"And snog."

"Merlin," Charlie sighed, "when I _don't_ snog Leah and just want to be friends, I have to hear about it from everybody and when _do_ snog and are going to go on a date, I get to hear about it."

Bill slapped his brother on the back, "That's what happens when you start dating someone who everyone was already friends with."

"Who was everybody friends with?" Hermione asked, walking in and holding a book.

"Leah," Bill answered.

"Ah, yes, Charlie, I'd warn you, tell you I'd hex you if you hurt Leah, but I have a feeling she'd do more damage herself."

"You mean she's more likely to hurt me?"

"Physically, yes."

"Maybe emotionally too," Bill said snidely.

--

Leah was able to get back and change her clothes just as everyone was about to sit down for Christmas Day dinner, and Mrs. Weasley directed everyone where to sit around the table. Leah kicked Charlie's leg when she sat down next to him and out of the corner of her eye, watched as he tried not to smile. Everyone was talking about the new Quidditch hoops Mr. Weasley and Charlie installed when Mrs. Weasley addressed Leah. "So, Leah dear, how was St. Mungo's?"

"Quiet, as usual on Christmas Day. Just a few Healers and a few unfortunate nurses."

"And everyone who doesn't celebrate Christmas," Luna said softly.

Charlie and Leah were relieved to see that they managed to keep the conversation off of them, off of their impending date.

That is, until desert.

"So, Charlie dear, where were you planning on taking Leah for your date?"

Charlie swallowed his pie and kicked Leah's leg, "Actually, Mrs. Weasley, that's a good question, Charlie hadn't told me where he planned on taking me, just that he'd like to take me out on my night-off in two days." She turned to Charlie and smiled sweetly. "Charlie?"

Charlie forced a smile, "Well, Mum, I was thinking about taking Leah to this lovely little Muggle restaurant. Italian, La Bella Casa. I know how much Leah loves to dress up, so I thought it would be perfect."

Leah kicked Charlie's leg, hard, still smiling, as Mira coughed, trying to hide her laughter.

"Oh, how _wonderful_!" Mrs. Weasley clapped her hands and hurried to collect the dishes from the table.

Leah followed Charlie upstairs and into his room until he acknowledged her presence. "Oh," he said, turning around and smiling, "can I help you, Ms. Cooper?"

Leah hit his arm and laughed, "So, I put you on the spot, and you just shove it right back in my face, don't you?"

"Whatever do you mean?"

Leah laughed and turned to leave, "Pick me up at 7. Wear that new tie." She went to leave, but Charlie grabbed her hand and pulled her in for a kiss. "Night."

--

It was the day of Leah and Charlie's date when Mira knocked on Leah's office's door. "So, tonight's the night."

"Of our date? Yes."

"What are you wearing?"

Leah looked up and rolled her eyes, "Merlin, you're as bad as Ginny, aren't you?" She sighed, "Something black."

Mira laughed and sat down, "So are you guys going to give Mrs. Weasley a run-down afterwards?"

Leah sighed again, "Charlie and I talked about that yesterday during my WWW shift and we decided that he would 'go out' more, ya know? Tell her he was going to see me, that sort of thing."

Mira nodded, "Won't that get her, I don't know, excited?"

Leah shrugged, "Merlin, who's dating who here? Do we have to cater to her needs? Merlin."

Mira laughed, "Sounds like it, yea. Just to keep Mrs. Weasley happy, give Charlie some space."

Leah sighed, "The things I do, huh?" She looked at her watch, "My shift's almost over, and I need to nap before I get ready."

Mira nodded solemly, "Going to be a long night."

Leah smacked her friend and grabbed her coat, leaving the office.

--

Charlie put on the tie Leah gave him and opened his door, "Hi, Mum."

"Oh, Charlie dear, you look _wonderful_, oh," she wiped her eyes quickly, "oh, do have fun, Charlie, and don't worry, your father and I won't wait up, so have a good time."

Charlie rolled his eyes as Mrs. Weasley left, wiping her eyes again. "Thanks, Mum."

A little while later, Charlie was knocking on the door to Leah's flat. "Bollocks, just a minute, Charlie!" Charlie laughed when the door swung open, revealing Leah struggling to put her shoe on.

"Why don't you sit and do that."

Leah looked up and laughed, "Yea, thanks, sorry I have to throw some jewelry on, sit down," she looked up again and grinned, "nice tie."

She hobbled down to her room and came out again a few seconds later, "Sorry, I napped longer than I had originally planned to." Charlie stood up to kiss her cheek, subtly looking her up and down.

"You look lovely," he said. And she did. She looked _simple_, like she always did, but lovely and _graceful_. Her hair was down and natural looking; Charlie had only ever seen it in ponytails or poofs, never just her shirt hair naturally straight. Her light brown hair was in stark contrast to the black dress she was wearing. It was a simple black cocktail dress that hit mid-thigh, but it was the low V-neck that caught Charlie's eye.

She couldn't help but smile when she saw Charlie's eyes wander to her chest. It _was_ a _low_ neckline, so she decided to not make a big deal of it. "Let me just grab my coat," he looked up at her face and tried not to blush as her eyes twinkled. He noticed her dramatic eye make-up that made her brown eyes pop out. She slipped on a long black coat, "And how are we getting there, Mr. Weasley?"

"Why, cab of course." They walked out into the cold night air and Charlie waved down a cabbie. They slipped into the car, "Now, I've never been to this place, I saw it when I was shopping with Fred and Mira, and since you put me on the spot…"

Leah laughed, "And you just wanted to _make_ me dress up, torture me."

Charlie shook his head and laughed, "Never!"

They were at the restaurant within minutes and Charlie was taking her coat, giving it to the maitre'd. It was a small restaurant, dimly lit and very romantic. Leah noticed a trio of men singing and playing instruments. They sat down with their menus and Leah leaned in to whisper, "Romance, Charlie, will do nothing to help you woo me."

"Oh?" he cocked an eyebrow, eyeing the menu.

"Hm, yes, I'm not very romantic, so having dinner in this romantic, little Italian restaurant, will not help you at all."

"In wooing you?"

"Precisely," she cocked an eyebrow and looked up at him, "Want to share an appetizer?"

--

"So when are you and Hermione joining forces?"

Leah grimaced, "When I have time. Merlin, you'd think they'd stop giving us a hard time about working."

Charlie shook his head, "Trust me, they won't."

She sighed, "I'm making a difference, you know? Or at least trying to. And Hermione works a lot too."

"Ah, but there's the rub. _She_ has a boyfriend. And," he sipped his red wine, "she doesn't have as many job titles as you."

"And she doesn't have to work weekends," she sighed, "but don't worry, I'm going to make Hermione work," she laughed and took a bite of her chicken. "She saw how I changed the, for lack of a better word, laws, at St. Mungo's and so decided to take it one step further. Sure, it's easy for _Remus_ to get a job, but other werewolves? Vampires?"

"Well, to be fair, I wouldn't want vampires taking my blood tests."

Leah glare at her date, "You've been hanging around the twins too often."

Charlie laughed, "But you figure if you work with Hermione -"

"- we'll have Harry's support and having Harry Potter supporting your cause _never_ hurts."

"Do you think people will be ready for this though, this type of upheaval?"

Leah sighed, "Honestly, no, but I mean, look at all the changes we've already accomplished, the younger generations are ready, I think, we're tired of prejudices, aren't we? I hope we can do something," she paused, "I think we're going to aim high, attempt to get things passed that we _know_ won't and than settle."

"Is that how you're supposed to do that sort of thing?"

Leah smiled and shrugged, "Hermione's the lawyer, not me. And I guess I have to listen to her with this sort of thing."

Charlie laughed, "Maybe I should make a pitch to her - more benefits for Dragon Keepers, offer jobs abroad."

"That sounds more like a pitch to throw to your boss."

Charlie laughed, "Don't think I haven't tried."

"So, itching to get back to Romania? Back to work?"

Charlie smiled wryly, "Hm, yes and no. I'm missing my dragons, being on the Reserve, but I'm actually having fun at home. Someone's kept me entertained." His eyes sparkled and Leah laughed.

"Glad I could help."

They continued to laugh until the waiter came back to take their dinner plates. "Desert menus?"

Leah grinned, "Yes, please."

Charlie laughed, "You're still hungry?"

Leah smiled back, "For tiramisu? Of course!"

Charlie sighed, "I don't know if I can afford this desert, might put me over the edge…" he winked at Leah who smiled slyly.

"Well, I suppose on our next date, I'll just have to allow you to get desert."

"Oh, so there'll be a second date, eh, Ms. Cooper?"

Leah just smiled as their waiter brought out Leah's desert, "Want a bite?" Charlie nodded and took a bite with his fork as Leah watched him. He cocked an eyebrow in response and Leah smiled, "You've been a _wonderful_ date, Charlie."

He smiled, "Well, you're not such a bad date yourself."

She laughed and turned serious again, "You truly wouldn't believe how many men are _afraid_ of professional, successful woman. Oh, being a Healer is all right I suppose, but I guess all of my accomplishments _frighten_ men, you know?" She sighed, "Don't think I'm getting soft though, upset that men are afraid of me."

Charlie laughed, "You enjoy it."

She smiled and watched Charlie pay the bill, "The only reason I'm letting you pay this bill is because I saved you."

Charlie's blue eyes twinkled as he smiled, "Next time you'll fight me."

"Precisely."

--

"What you're not going to walk me home?"

"Oh, and aren't we funny," he laughed as he shoved her into the taxi. Leah allowed Charlie to pay the cabbie, knowing full well that next time she'd _insist_ on paying for everything. He got out a few seconds after her, "Care for a nightcap, Mr. Weasley?"

"Why, Ms. Cooper are you trying to get me to come back to your flat?" He laughed as he saw Leah's eyes twinkle, "A nightcap sounds _wonderful_, Ms. Cooper." They walked up to her flat and Leah opened the door for Charlie, turning on the light. He started to take off his coat and turned around to say something, but Leah had quickly shut the door and walked the few feet to close the gap between them, kissing him fiercely. He kissed her just as passionately back, and pushed her coat off her shoulders, backing her up against the door. She attempted to take his coat off while still kissing him. She finally got his coat off and was snaking her hands around his neck and hair when she snuck her leg around his, pulling him closer to her. He groaned into her mouth as every part of their bodies were practically touching. His lips grazed her chin and moved down to her neck when she whispered, "Still want that nightcap?"

"Not particularly," he managed to get out, still kissing her neck, and pushing her dress off her right shoulder to kiss her collarbone. She moaned when she couldn't lean her head back any further because of the door.

"Charlie?" he let out a low growl in response. "Want to take this to the bedroom?"

He pulled his head back from her collarbone and looked her in the eye, "You'd kill me if I carried you, hm?"

She laughed and put her leg down, and took his hand, "Come on, to the bedroom." Leah turned around when they got into her room and looked him in the eyes as she started to remove his tie. "You know," she whispered, "this tie really did look _fantastic_ on you. Any shade of blue make your eyes so much more - blue - don't they?"

His hand lightly caressed her one bare shoulder and felt her shiver, "Some really gorgeous witch bought it for me." He kissed her shoulder as she pulled his tie off and took a step closer to unbutton his shirt. He brought his lips up to her face and kissed her again as she continued to unbutton his shirt, tantalizingly slowly. He groaned again, kissing her more fiercely, moving his hands over her dress, looking for a zipper. He found the zipper on the back of her dress, and unzipped it quickly, moving his fingers lightly over her back, making her shiver again. "You're not wearing a bra," he whispered gruffly into her jaw, kissing her again, and walking them towards her bed as she finally pushed his shirt off. When her legs hit the bed, he pulled her dress off of her and watched as she sat down on the bed, clad only in her panties and heels. He sucked in his breath, as he looked her up and down. She blushed under his gaze, but slipped her shoes off slowly, and moved to undo his belt, pulling it out from his belt loops quickly. He moved his hands down her shoulders on to her breasts as her let in a sharp breath, letting her head back for a moment while he continued until she moved her hands to his pants. She undid his belt and zipper and pulled his pants down. She moved back on the bed as he stepped out of his pants, slipping off his socks and shoes. He grinned as he hovered over her, and Leah noticed his eyes were a darker blue.

"I think this is one part of the date we shouldn't tell your Mum, huh?" Leah whispered in between kisses as Charlie continued to kiss her lips, neck, collarbone and moved down her chest to her breasts.

She sucked in another breath and a low moan as Charlie chuckled gruffly, "Let's not talk about my mum, shall we?" She nodded as he continued to kiss her chest and stomach. She moved her hands across his back and moved them to her chest, smiling to herself. His chest looked and felt as nice as she had imagined it did underneath his shirts. She could look and touch his chest and back all night. He began to kiss lower and lower down her stomach, going past her belly button when Leah said gruffly, still feeling his chest. "Charlie, I've been waiting for this for a long time, enough with the foreplay," she paused as he looked up to meet her eyes, "they'll be enough time for this _after_."

That was all Charlie needed to hear.

--

Leah sighed as she moved closer to Charlie's chest, his arm tightening around her waist. "This is nice," he whispered into her hair.

"Hm," she whispered, drawing shapes on his chest, "I'm glad I saved you from your mum."

"I'm glad we decided being just friends was too difficult for both of us."

Leah laughed softly, "I'm glad you work with dragons."

"Oh?" Charlie chuckled and moved his head to look at her. "Is that a compliment on my physique?"

Leah smirked and poked his chest, "Now, don't go fishing for compliments, Mr. Weasley."

He laughed, "Well, Healing must be good for the physique too, because I'm not complaining," he said softly as he kissed her shoulder, moving his hand down her bare arm and smiling as she shivered.

"Well, thank you," she managed to get out as she moved her foot along his leg, grinning as he let out a growl.

"Leah…" he warned.

"What?" she asked innocently, moving her hand along his chest and over his side, down his back.

"Don't you have work tomorrow?" he barely managed to get out.

"Not till later," she pouted, "are you really going to try to resist?" she asked softly, moving her hand down, dangerously close to his waist, her fingers barely touching his skin, making Charlie shiver and groan. He couldn't resist any longer. He quickly pushed Leah flat on her back and hovered over her, kissing her fiercely again, her hands still on either side of his waist. She grinned into the kiss as she felt his chest vibrate when he groaned as she moved her hand.

Who knew she could hold such power over a man who could handle dragons?

--

A/N: Sorry, no _actual_ sex in the "sex scenes", since I didn't feel like writing them. If you guys (whoever of you out there are still reading and/or reviewing) want sex in these scenes, let me know I suppose in a REVIEW!! Thanks!!


	8. VIII

Mira opened her eyes; there was a sliver of sun peeking through the curtains

Leah yawned loudly, trying to stretch, only to hit Charlie's chest. "Oi," he moaned, "what are you doing? Go back to sleep," he tightened his arm around her waist, moving his other arm to pin her arms against her body.

"Charlie!" she laughed, squirming, trying to get free, "come on, we have to get up!"

"Shh," he smiled, his eyes still closed, "you don't have work today, and I don't have to be anywhere, so let's sleep."

"What about your Mum?"

He opened one eye, "Are you trying to trick me, Ms. Dean?"

"Never," she laughed, "but I don't want your mother to think that I'm some sort of wanton woman who's taken you against your will -"

Charlie laughed deeply, his eyebrows wriggling, "Not against my will," he moved his fingers over Leah's hips, making Leah squirm, trying not to laugh.

"Charlie Weasley, if you tickle me, so Merlin help you…"

Charlie stopped, grinning, "I'll just tell Mum I got back late and had to wake up early, get some things done," he paused, "I doubt she thinks your some wanton slut-"

"I never said slut, Charlie. Are you calling me a slut?" She cocked an eyebrow, challenging him.

Charlie laughed and loosened his grip on her arms so that she could put her arms around his neck. "Please Leah, my entire family thinks your perfect, I doubt my mum would think you were a slut."

Leah smiled, kissing him briefly, "I _am_ perfect." She pulled her face away, "Come on, let's get up, shower, have some breakfast, we're already awake."

Charlie kissed her neck, "You little trickster…" he growled softly and pulled her waist closer to him. "Why don't we stay in bed for a little longer, _than_ shower and all that, hm?"

Leah moaned softly as Charlie continued to kiss her neck and collarbone. "Well, it's still early, so as long as we go to WWW by noon -" she stopped talking, Charlie's mouth on hers. They had a few hours to spare…

--

Leah sat up, "Come on, let's eat something before we get ready to go out to Diagon."

Charlie groaned, "Why do we have to go to WWW??" He watched her slip on a pair of plain navy panties and tug on a large t-shirt from one of her drawers.

She turned around and sighed, hands on her hips, "Come on, Charlie, let's eat." Charlie sat up and slipped on his boxers, not bothering to put on a shirt. "I promised the boys I'd stop in today for a little while, apparently Verity had to move back to France, something about her mum."

Charlie followed her into the kitchen, "So you have to work more now?"

Leah laughed, looking in her refrigerator for eggs, "No, they want me to help train some of the new hires. Bollocks."

"Hires?"

"They decided to hire a few more for the other stores too, do it all at once, get it out of the way. You know how they are."

Charlie laughed, "No eggs?"

"Nothing. I haven't been food shopping in ages…is cereal okay?"

Charlie grinned, looking through the cabinets for some bowls, "As long as you have milk."

The two talked about WWW, eating their cereal, completely at ease with each other. Leah laughed after a few minutes, "Charlie, I'm glad we did this - that we didn't wait too long before we, you know, went on a date."

Charlie grinned, drawing circles on Leah's arm, "Me too, Leah, me too," he paused, "What are you doing tonight?"

Leah smiled, "A second date already?"

Charlie shrugged, "Why not? The sooner the better."

"I have an early shift tomorrow, but that sounds fine," she paused, cocking an eyebrow, "as long as _I_ get to pay." She picked up their bowls and put them in the sink, planning on washing them later, "Come on, we need to get ready and go see the twins."

Charlie grabbed her hand and led her back to her room, "We could save time, and water, by taking one shower…"

Leah pinched his side lightly, making him yip in surprise, "You haven't gotten any in a long time, have you?"

Charlie turned, walking backwards into the bathroom, "It can get awfully lonely on the Reserve," he said quietly, his eyes moving slowly over her body. "And no Romanian is as attractive," he kissed her cheek, "or intelligent," he kissed her other cheek, "or funny," he kissed her jawbone, "or sexy," he kissed the corner of her mouth, "did I mention intelligent?"

Leah opened her eyes slowly, "Flattering won't get you anywhere, Mr. Weasley," she paused, drawing her fingers over his chest, "but since we both need to shower, and we both are so busy working," she turned on the water, making sure to lean over just enough. She turned her head, "Well?" She lifted her shirt over her head, and slipped off her knickers, walking under the water, gesturing for Charlie to come in with her.

He growled, "How do you do this to me, Leah?"

--

Leah and Charlie were bombarded by the twins as soon as they walked into WWW a little while later, "How was the date?" "You guys are arriving together, so you had a, uh, what are you kids calling it? Sleepovers?" "Is there a second date?" "Mum wondered about you."

Leah held up a hand to silence them, "Did you just say your mum asked about our date?"

Fred grinned slyly, "She wanted to know where Charlie was, said she didn't hear him come in or leave, which would lead one to assume that -"

"You know what they say about assuming, little brother," Charlie said warningly.

Fred let out a nervous laugh, "Right, well, we said that you had left early this morning, come by to see us, than went out to a movie with Leah."

Leah was astonished, "You know what a movie it?"

Fred rolled his eyes, "You and Mira talk about them enough…"

George interrupted, "But, how _was_ your date?"

Leah rolled her eyes and walked behind the counter, pulling out a binder to check the week's records, "None of your business, boss-man. Now, please, where are the nuggets you wanted me to train?"

George sighed, "They'll be coming shortly," he paused and turned to Charlie, "and no offense, older brother, but why are you here? You're not qualified to train anyone."

Charlie shrugged, leaning against the counter, "Had nothing else to do today, had to make sure Leah would hold out on her promise for our second date tonight."

Leah rolled her eyes and hid her smile as Fred and George let out catcalls and whistles. "So it _did_ go well! Jolly good, we thought it might! Should we inform the others?"

"Why did you hold bets?" Leah asked dryly.

Fred let out a mock gasp, clutching his heart, "Why, Leah Cooper! We would _never_ bet!"

"We are not gamblers, Leah!"

"And anyway, we all thought it was going to turn out well anyway, so who would we have bet against?"

Charlie nudged Leah as he stepped behind the counter too, his hand creeping along the small of her back, hidden from the twins. Leah tried to keep a straight face. She thought she heard George same something, "Hm?"

George mumbled something incoherent, "Did you talk to Ginny yet today?"

"No, why?"

"Well, I'm afraid your second date will have to be postponed."

Charlie groaned and Leah couldn't help but laugh quietly, "May I inquire as to why?"

"Well, Harry finally popped the question last night, so we're all going out for drinks tonight before Mum holds a grand luncheon on Saturday."

Charlie groaned again, "Drinks? Bollocks."

Leah grinned and whispered to Charlie out of earshot of the twins, "We can leave early, Charlie, don't worry. My shift is only at 7." She laughed, her hot breath on his cheek, "You _really_ haven't gotten any in a while, huh?"

"Leah dear, I suppose we'll have to let you leave a little early than so you can go round and get ready for drinks."

Leah pretended to look offended, which was very convincing to poor Fred. "Why, do I not look okay today or something, I need extra time to make myself look presentable?"

Fred stuttered, "N-no-no, Leah, that's not what I meant, at all, what I meant was, um, was that, well, you know, um, we're having drinks at around 6, and well, it's at that new place, you know, that Ginny wanted to try, and well, I think Hermione was planning on getting all dressed up, so I just assumed that you would too, and well, bollocks."

Leah and Charlie laughed at Fred, who turned slightly pink. "Fred, you are _much_ too easy!"

--

Charlie watched as Leah talked to the "nuggets" as she called them, trying to get them to not be nervous around their new bosses, making them laugh, making them feel comfortable. He was amazed at how laid back and funny she could be in front of these people, making them feel at ease by down playing her intelligence, playing up her goofy-side that he had seen very little of. She told them everything they needed to know, all of their responsibilities, making them seem easier and less intense than they probably were.

Leah's brown eyes flashed to where Charlie was leaning against a door frame in the back of the room, and she tried not to smile. "Mr. Weasley and Mr. Weasley are very reasonable bosses, but they _are_ your employers, just make sure you don't forget that. Now, for those of you working in the Hogsmeade, Diagon Alley and Summer's Run, please see Mr. Weasley to my left, and those of you working in the other stores, please go with Mr. Weasley to my right. I'm sorry I have to leave so abruptly, but I'm sure I'll be seeing you around the stores soon enough!" She walked towards Charlie, waving to the new employees who were all bidding their farewells to her. She stood next to Charlie and listened as Fred made an impromptu announcement, "Ladies and gents, that was Leah Cooper, who is a very prominent Healer at St. Mungo's, and yes, she still has time to work for us part-time, because she just can't get enough of us, can you, dear?"

"Ah, yes, of course."

"Anyway, children, Miss Leah is a _very_ prominent Healer at St. Mungo's, so next time your sick, make sure you mention you know her, and you'll be in the best of hands!"

Leah laughed, "Ah, now, now, Fred, don't lie to the children. I'm sorry mates, but I don't work in the emergency area, but I actually deal with more, uh, specific, and uh, intense cases."

George cut in, "Yes, sorry Leah, dear, she is too expensive and too good of a Healer for us lowly types. Now, Leah dear, run along, you have a date to go on, yes? With our dear older brother, yes, that's him in the back there, wave, brother Charlie."

Charlie smiled and waved, still leaning against the door frame, "If your bosses ever bother you too much, you let me know, and I'll sic some dragons on them -"

Fred laughed nervously, "Yes, yes, Charlie, thank you. Now you two kids go have fun, yes? Farewell!"

Leah and Charlie laughed quietly and walked out to the front of the store where Leah went to grab her coat, but Charlie grabbed her belt hoop and pulled her back towards him. He kissed her lips softly, "Where do you think you're going so quickly, hm?" he whispered.

Leah smiled lazily, "I have to go and see Ginny and the girls before I go get ready don't I? And I think you should make an appearance at your house so your mum doesn't worry too much."

Charlie smiled and kissed her a little longer this time, "So what if she thinks I was in bed all day with you?"

Leah laughed, her hands on his arms, "I do, now, come on, It's already 4:30, yea? And I need to go see the girls and go get ready. Do you want me to pick you up, so your mum doesn't worry too much?"

Charlie laughed and kissed her again, "Oh, come on, you're going to see Ginny tonight, why do you have to see her now?"

"Don't you want me to hear the story now so we can leave the pub earlier?" she whispered hotly into his ear, finally prying herself away from him, grabbing her coat and opening the door quickly. "I'll see you later," she winked and walked out into the brisk wind of Diagon Alley.

Charlie groaned and laughed to himself. She was killing him. But she was right, he probably _should_ go see his mother...

Leah Apparated to outside of Ginny and Hermione's flat, but before she could knock, Mira opened the door, "_Where_ have you been?" she hissed, "I've been going crazy listening to all this wedding talk, how could you leave me by myself with them?"

Leah tried not to laugh at her best friend's obvious annoyance, "Fred and George made me train the new kids, I got her as soon as I could!" Her face fell when she saw Ginny and Hermione leaning over a magazine at the coffee table, "_Oh, no_, they didn't break out the wedding magazines already, did they?"

Mira nodded, "And they won't let me drink yet. Merlin, do you owe me _bad_."

Ginny jumped up and squealed when she saw Leah, "Leah! Did you hear? Harry and I are engaged!!"

Leah gave her young friend a big hug, "Oh, Ginny, I'm so happy for you! How did it happen?" She ignored the pinch Mira gave her.

"Well, he invited me over for dinner after my shift, even though it was late and he had an early team meeting today. So I walk in, and the lights are very dim, and some Muggle song is playing very softly, and he beckons me into the kitchen where he laid out the spaghetti and meatballs-"

Mira snorted and Leah said sarcastically, "Wow, he sounds like a really great cook, Ginny."

"Yea," Mira agreed, "you picked a good one, Gin."

Hermione rolled her eyes, "Hush, you two, let her finish!"

Ginny stuck her tongue out, "He knew I really liked his pasta since Mum never makes anything Italian like that. So he poured us each a glass of red wine, and we're eating the pasta, and I'm wearing, you know, my usual work clothes, and I was so tired, and all of a sudden, he was on his knees, next to my chair."

Ginny paused because Hermione was smiling so widely, tears welling in her eyes, "Oh, Ginny, it sounds all so perfect!"

Leah looked pointedly to Mira. Fred was going to have to have a very extravagant proposal, and probably soon.

"So he said how he was so thankful that he stopped being a prick in Hogwarts, and finally allowed himself to love me, and how he was so grateful that I treated him as Harry Potter, the person, and not Harry Potter the Boy-Who-Lived-Twice," she paused, and produced a giant rock on her finger.

"Holy _shit_, Gin!" Leah grabbed her hand to look at it closer, "Damn, girl, I knew Harry was rich, but, _damn_. You _did_ pick good!"

Ginny laughed, "So we decided to get married as soon as we could - so right before his season really starts, and right after I get my license, so we can have at least a short honeymoon now, and take a longer one once his season is over."

Leah laughed, "So, wait, when are you going to get married?"

Ginny grinned widely, "He wanted Valentine's Day, but I said, no I wanted it sooner, so we decided on January 15," she paused, "and you three are going to be my bridesmaids!!"

Leah and Mira did their best to grin, "Oh, Ginny, thanks! Oh, Merlin, Gin, this is so exciting!"

Ginny grinned, "So I'm going dress shopping tomorrow with Mum, and I already picked out the fabric and color for your dresses -"

"Oh, Ginny, no, please tell me it's not pink -" Mira started to plead.

Ginny laughed and Hermione finished for her, "No, no, Ginny decided on a very flattering turquoise. Since it'll compliment all of our complexions and hair nicely, and won't clash with any red-heads." She paused, "And yes, it's a little soon for the wedding, but Mrs. Weasley is going to plan it mostly, with the help of Fleur and probably Charlie."

Leah burst out laughing and couldn't stop for a few minutes as the other three ladies waited for her to stop. "What's so funny?" Hermione wondered.

"You're going to get Charlie to help plan a wedding?"

Ginny nodded, "He's home for the month and not working, so he'll have to. And this way too, we won't risk having Fleur giving birth _during_ the wedding since she's not due till March."

Leah and Mira laughed, "Merlin, Ginny, this is soon! But we're happy for you!"

Ginny grinned, "So we're having drinks tonight, and than Mum is having us all over for lunch on New Year's Day to celebrate too."

Mira nodded, "Leah are you working New Year's Eve?"

Leah shook her head, "I get off at 6, so I'm free to drink the night away with you kids."

Ginny grinned, "Perfect, so than, in a few days, we can all get everyone to try on their dresses - don't worry, they'll be different cuts, and than we can get dresses for the benefit too."

Leah rolled her eyes, "Sounds like I'll be spending quite a few paychecks on these dresses, won't I?"

Ginny rolled her eyes back, "Leah, go back to your flat and get ready, we're meeting for drinks at 6, and it's at that new place, Mulligan's, so dress nicely."

Leah and Mira stood up from the couch and grabbed their coats, "See you two soon than, yea?"

--

Leah and Mira Apparated to Leah's flat, Mira grabbing a bottle of wine out of the refrigerator as she as she walked in, not even bothering to take her coat off. "How many times did you hear the proposal?"

Mira groaned louder this time, pouring herself a full glass, "Only about a thousand. Merlin, I know it's exciting, and I was so pleased for her, but Hermione needed to hear it over and over, dissect every minute detail, it was _exhausting_."

Leah tried not to laugh, "So when do you think Fred's going to propose to her?"

Mira rolled her eyes, taking a gulp of her wine, "I'd say the weekend after the wedding. And Harry and Ginny are going to get married before Ron and Luna, Merlin."

"Good thing Luna wanted a long engagement anyway, I guess. Lucky for her."

"And for Ginny."

"And good thing Ron doesn't care too much, yea?" Leah laughed, "Mrs. Weasley's going to have wedding fever."

Mira groaned, "She'll be all up on my case, won't she?"

"Yours and mine," Leah said as she walked into her room to pick out an outfit. "Want to borrow something?"

Mira, finishing her glass in another gulp yelled from her spot on the couch, "Yes, please, let me borrow whatever, I don't feel like going all the way back to my flat."

Leah came back into the main room holding a few shirts, "Pick one to wear with the jeans you have on now, yea? And is George picking you up?"

Mira shook her head, tempted to pour herself another glass of wine, "No, said he would meet me there," she paused, her eyes twinkling, warning Leah of what was to come, "say, how was your date?"

Leah grinned, "Wow, took you long enough, eh?"

Mira stared at her friend, "You're not getting out of this that easy, come on, fess up, how many times did you guys do it?"

Leah groaned, "Mira! Come on! I didn't ask you that, did I?" She paused, holding up a pale yellow shirt, "A few times, okay? And we were _going_ to go on a second date tonight, but now we have these drinks…" she paused again, holding up a navy shirt, "so I promised we'd leave early."

Mira laughed, grabbing a black shirt from the pile, "You guys are two peas in a pod."

Leah rolled her eyes, "I'm picking him up at the Burrow, and _you_ are coming with me, just for asking me how many times Charlie and I slept together."

Mira cocked an eyebrow, "How good?"

Leah looked her best friend straight in the eye, and didn't blush, causing Mira to bite her lip to not laugh, "Good."

Mira burst out laughing, "Well, see, now you and Charlie don't have to pretend in front of Mrs. Weasley. _And_ you got a date for the wedding!"

Leah rolled her eyes, taking the navy shirt and walking back into her room, "Shut your mouth and hurry up. We have 20 minutes before we have to pick up Charlie. And you know how Ginny hates when we're late."

--

Mira and Leah were not surprised when it was Mrs. Weasley who opened the door to the Burrow, "Oh, girls, hello, please, please, come on, I'll just call Charlie down. Oh, isn't it exciting? Sure, we'll have lots of work to do to plan and get ready, but oh, it will be wonderful, won't it?" Leah and Mira barely had time to nod when she yelled up the stairs, "Charlie! Leah and Mira are here!"

They heard Charlie mumble something, and Mrs. Weasley turned back to the girls, "You two are free for lunch New Year's right? We'll be celebrating Ginny and Harry's engagement than too."

Leah nodded, "We both made sure, don't worry Mrs. Weasley. But how do Ron and Luna feel about this?"

Mrs. Weasley waved her hand in dismissal, "Oh, you know those two, they won't mind being engaged for years. They don't mind if Ginny and Harry marry before them," she grinned, "my little baby is going to be married before everyone else," she wiped her eyes and waved to the girls, "I have to get back to cooking dinner for Mr. Weasley, he'll be home any minute, please have a good time tonight!" She started to walk towards the kitchen, but turned around, her hand in the air, "Oh, Leah dear, how did your date with Charlie go?"

Leah tried not to roll her eyes, "It went very well, thank you Mrs. Weasley. We'll be going on another date, hopefully soon, after tonight of course."

Mrs. Weasley grinned, "And you two will have dates for the wedding!" She turned back and walked into the kitchen.

Leah groaned softly and whispered to Mira, "Why does everyone think I wasn't going to be able to find a date for the wedding? I could have found one."

Mira tried not to grin, "But would you have bothered?"

Leah didn't get to retort as Charlie bounded down the stairs, "Sorry I'm late, ladies," he kissed Mira's cheek, and than grabbed Leah's waist to kiss her properly, much to Mira's disgust.

"Please, I know you two had fun last night, but Merlin, please don't do that in front of me!"

Leah grinned at her best friend, Charlie's cheek against her own, "Oh, please, I have to deal with this from you and George all the time." She tugged on Charlie's shirt, "Come on, get your coat, we got to go, Ginny will be bloody pissed if we're late."

Charlie grabbed his coat, and the three Apparated outside of the pub. They walked in and were immediately waved down by Ginny, Hermione, Harry and the twins. "Ron and Luna aren't here yet, but we're going to order anyway, I'm _starved_."

Leah laughed and took her coat off, placing it over her chair, unaware that Charlie was watching her every move. She was wearing a tight navy sleeveless top that stopped right above her waist, allowing a sliver of skin to peek through. As she sat down in her chair, Charlie lightly drew a line on her exposed skin, causing her to shudder slightly, and turn towards him. She was wearing dramatic make-up, her eyes looking as green as Charlie had ever seen them, her light hair in a ponytail, her bangs almost hitting her eyes. She cocked an eyebrow and leaned towards him to whisper, "Not until everyone starts dancing, hm?"

Charlie pouted slightly, "Why, everyone knows we like each other…"

Leah tried not to smile, bringing her attention back to her menu, but Charlie felt the pointed toe of a shoe on his calf, and knew it wasn't Mira's.

"Harry," Leah said, still looking at her menu, "how does it feel to finally be engaged?"

"Yes," Mira continued in the same monotone and seemingly uninterested voice, "how does it feel to have popped the question?"

"Taking the plunge," Leah continued, turning the page.

"Tying yourself down."

Hermione rolled her eyes and said rather loudly, "You two are almost as bad as the twins!"

"Hey!" Fred and George said at the same time.

Leah smiled innocently, "Why, Mione, we were just asking Harry a simple question, weren't we Mira?"

"Yes, Harry, we just want to know how it feels to be engaged."

Harry rolled his eyes and put down his menu, ready to order, "It feels wonderful, thank you Leah, thank you Mira."

Ginny stuck her tongue out at her two friends as the waiter came over to take their orders. Charlie turned towards Leah once they ordered, "Care to accompany me to the bar, Leah?"

Fred overheard, "Why would you two go to the bar? Our waiter took our drink orders?"

Leah rolled her eyes and grabbing Charlie's hand said to Fred, "Since we have to sit around with you lot, we want to get drunk quicker."

Charlie shrugged to his younger brother and grinned as he followed Leah to the bar. "When I said bar, I really meant -"

Leah pinched his arm, leaning up against the bar, pulling Charlie next to her, "I _know_ what you meant, Mr. Weasley, but the quicker we eat, and the quicker we pretend to get drunk -"

Charlie sighed, waving the bartender over, "The quicker we can leave, I heard you." He pressed his side against hers, "But we could just go snog now in the bathroom," he whispered, his hot breath against her bare neck.

She sighed softly, "Charlie, come on, stop."

Charlie was grinning now, knowing he was winning, "Come on Leah, we both know you don't want me to stop."

Leah bit her lip and grabbed the glass of wine the bartender offered her, abruptly leaving the bar, walking back towards the table, swaying her hips slightly. "You're going to pay for that on the dance floor, Mr. Weasley."

Charlie laughed, grabbing the beer from the bar and following Leah back to the table where Ron and Luna were finally sitting.

Leah had never really gotten to know Luna, just because of her busy schedule, and Luna's odd schedule, running a very successful café. They had chatted on a few occasions when everyone was together, but Leah found that Luna was very quiet, choosing to think rather than speak. Leah respected Luna tremendously, and was impressed with her savvy business sense, and really wished that she would get to know Luna better in the future. But from Leah could tell during dinner, Luna was not upset by Ginny and Harry's engagement. Nor did she seem to feel betrayed. Leah suspected that Luna didn't particularly care _when_ she got married to Ron, just as long as they eventually had a wedding.

Leah and Charlie were relieved to see that the conversation stayed away from them and mainly stayed on the engagement. As they were finishing up their main course, however, Mira, starting to feel the effects of the alcohol, said to Charlie, "So, Charlie, I heard that you will be helping out Ginny with the planning of this wedding."

Charlie's fork stopped half-way to his mouth, "What?" he asked quietly.

Ginny put down her glass, "Now, now, Charlie, come on, you have to help, you're the only one who's not working, and - and, mum said!"

Charlie was about to say something, but Leah grabbed his arm and whispered, "Come on, Charlie, let's go dance."

"No, Leah, I need Ginny to know that I won't be helping her with her wedding -"

"Charlie," she whispered, trying to be more seductive this time, rubbing his leg, "come on love, let's go dance," she paused, Charlie's eyes still intently on his sister, who was glaring at Mira. "We'll dance once, wrap up our food, and than go back to my place, come on."

Upon hearing, "go back to my place", Charlie stood up and followed Leah to the dance floor, not entirely forgetting what just took place.

Leah wrapped her arms around Charlie's neck, moving her hips slightly to the slow song. Charlie rested one hand on the small of her back, the other resting on her hip. "I'm going to kill them all you know," he whispered into her hair.

Leah sighed, "I know, but I had to drag you away from there. You can deal with Ginny and your Mum when I'm at work so I won't have to hear about it."

Charlie laughed, rubbing his hand up and down her side, "You're too much."

A song finally came on with a thumping bass and Leah grinned, moving her hands from his neck to his chest, grabbing on to his shirt when he didn't start dancing immediately, "Charlie," she grinned, "come on, _dance_!" She laughed, moving her hips and putting her hands on his waist, trying to get him to move.

Charlie laughed, leaning his head down to press his forehead against her own, "I could never dance as well as you, Ms. Cooper."

She throw her head back and laughed, turning around in his hold, making sure to rub her bum against his front, making him bite back a groan. She turned her head to look up at him and cocked an eyebrow, "I told you to stop before, didn't I?"

Mira apologized to Ginny for spilling the beans to Charlie, but Ginny dismissed the apology, "I'm glad you told him actually, that makes it easier for me. Now I just have to tell him that Mum said he had to. Now Mum can deal with him."

Mira frowned, "I _am_ really sorry though. I'll do anything you need me to to help, Ginny, promise."

Ginny grinned, "Well, you'll have to come for your bridesmaid dresses fitting after New Years."

Mira frowned, "Great," she didn't continue though when Leah and Charlie came back.

They were both grinning when they sat down, and Leah nudged Charlie when she saw that everyone was staring at them. "What do you suppose they're staring at, Mr. Weasley?"

Charlie shrugged, his head in his hand, "I think they're just wishing how much they were like us, Ms. Cooper, since were the eldest here and all."

Leah smiled, taking a sip of Charlie's beer since she had long finished her wine, "You're probably right." She turned to Ginny and Harry, "We hope you two don't mind, but we're going to wrap our food up and leave a little early - I have an early shift tomorrow -"

"- and I told her I'd walk her home," Charlie finished, rubbing her leg under the table.

George raised an eyebrow, "Oh, come on, you two, we both now that's a lie."

Leah stared straight into her boss's eye, "I _do_ have an early shift tomorrow, and Charlie _did_ promise to walk me home."

Fred snorted, "Just admit that you two had a wonderful date, are going to have a second date, and just want to get back to your flat to shag all night."

Charlie covered his mouth, trying not to laugh as Leah, taking a small bite of her food, replied, "Until I have to go to sleep for my shift, of course."

Ron sputtered out his beer, Harry pounding him on the back, trying to prevent him from choking as Ginny managed, "Oh, come on! I don't want to imagine you two shagging!'

Leah shrugged, "Than you should all mind your own business, yea?" She waved the waiter over, "Yes, please, can we have these wrapped, thank you."

Charlie and Leah ignored the rest of the teasing from their friends as they stood up, putting on their coats. "Gin," Charlie said to his sister, grabbing his and Leah's leftover dinner, "you'll be seeing me bright and early tomorrow so you and Mum can explain everything that is going on, yea?"

Ginny frowned, "Sure, Charlie, sure."

Leah waved to everyone, "Congrats, you two, see you all soon!"

Charlie put his hand on the small of Leah's back as they maneuvered their way out of the pub. When they got outside, Leah pulled her coat closer to her body, shivering very slightly; Charlie leaned down and whispered in her ear, "Do you want to take a cab back to your flat?"

Leah shook her head, moving her head to kiss him lightly, "No, come on, it's snowing a little, let's walk, yea? I like the snow."

Charlie smiled, pulling her closer to him as they walked, "Is it your favorite season?"

Leah shook her head, snaking her arm around Charlie's waist, "No, I like autumn best. All the colors, it's cooler out, I like the wind," she paused and looked up at him, "what's your favorite?"

Charlie grinned, "In Romania? Fall. You should see it - the colors of the leaves with the dragons," he stopped short and Leah nudged him, wanting him to continue.

"You miss it, don't you?"

Charlie shrugged, "Not the people per se, but the dragons? The work?" He nodded, his blue eyes bright and sad. "I do," he shrugged, "but someone here is keeping me amused…when she's not busy working that is."

Leah rubbed his arm, "Charlie, what are we going to do?"

Charlie stopped, pulling Leah in front of him to look directly in her eyes, his thumb delicately stroking her cheek, "Hey, Leah, come on, let's not think about that yet, hm? Let's enjoy our time together, and when the time comes for me to go back to Romania, we can think about it than. I mean, I can't be a Dragon Keeper forever, can I? You don't see any middle-aged Keepers," he frowned at Leah's own frown. "Maybe when we're both 50, we'll both want to stop working and just travel the world, yea? Maybe that's what we'll do."

Leah nodded, standing on her toes to kiss him, "I'm sorry, Charlie, I didn't mean to bring it up…"

Charlie nodded, "We'll talk about it when the time comes, okay?" Leah tried to smile, still looking skeptical. "It'll all work out, won't it?" He took her hand and his and continued to walk. "Who knows? Maybe you'll get sick of me and all my dragon talk soon?"

Leah hit his arm playfully, "Is this before or after you get bored with the sex?"

Charlie laughed, "Oh, please, the sex I will _never_ get bored with."

--

Leah kissed him fiercely as soon as they were inside her flat, and Charlie was kissing her just as fiercely back, both trying to rip each other's coats off. Leah laughed against his lips, pushing him away slightly to take her own coat off, Charlie doing the same. He attacked her again as soon as their coats were off, slipping off his shoes. "Let's do it on the couch," Charlie said as he moved his mouth to her neck, as she moaned, "we haven't done it there yet."

Leah moaned and nodded, "That's fine, that's fine," her hands roamed against his chest, attempting to undo the buttons on his shirt. Charlie's hands slid underneath her shirt, towards her bra, making her moan again and grind her hips against his front. She pulled her shirt over her head, and than immediately pushed Charlie's shirt down his arms, grinning. Charlie kissed her again, slowly now, moving his hands down her stomach, towards the waist of her jeans, unbuttoning them slowly, making Leah moan again in frustration.

"No, no," Charlie said against her lips, and grabbed her hands, smiling lazily, "we're taking it slow this time."

Leah growled, as Charlie pushed her towards the couch, putting her arms above her head and she shoved her down. "Charlie, let me have my hands back."

Charlie chuckled, keeping her hands above her head and moving his other hand to continue with her jeans. "No, no, Leah, don't resist this, come on," he pulled her jeans down slowly with one hand, Leah resisting to buck up her hips or pull her hands away, knowing that Charlie would draw this out even further. He grinned upon seeing her lacy knickers. "My, my, Ms. Cooper, such scandalous panties you have on, hm?" He kissed a line down her stomach and right above her knickers as Leah writhed slightly.

"Charlie, come on, _please_."

Charlie grinned again, moving to kiss her lips again, "I like it when you beg," he hooked his finger in her knickers, pulling them down slowly. "But I'm not going to listen." He kissed her inner thighs slowly, chuckling as Leah bucked her hips again. She was about to beg Charlie one more time when she suddenly felt his lips on her hot, wet, center.

"Charlie!" She bucked her hips again, trying to move his mouth closer to her. "Ooh, Charlie," she bit her lip, trying to stop moving, trying not to let Charlie realize how much she was actually enjoying this. But Charlie knew she was enjoying it anyway. Her entire body shuddered, a strangled moan slipped from her lips as Charlie kissed her inner thighs and back up her stomach to her face, letting his grip on her arms relax a little. "That was _so_ hot," he whispered, grinning, kissing her fully on the mouth.

Leah smiled lazily into the kiss, attempting to use her feet to push down his boxers. "Come on, Charlie, I'm not going to reciprocate right now, I need you _inside_ me, _now_." She managed to slip her hands out of his grasp before he could stop her, and ripped his boxers down his legs, wrapping her legs around his waist, poising his throbbing member at her center. She looked him in the eyes, "Now, Charlie."

He didn't need to be told again.

--

Leah woke up at 5:30, turning her alarm off quickly to as not wake Charlie. She yawned and sat up, rubbing her eyes. She didn't mind getting up this early usually, but usually she got more than a few hours of sleep before an early shift. She trudged over to her bathroom, turning the water on and jumping in while it was still cold. That woke her up immediately.

She dressed quickly and quietly, Charlie didn't even move in the slightest. She smiled at his sleeping form, and kissed him quickly on the cheek before heading into the living room to grab her bag and coat. She'd go to a café for breakfast, read the paper, and head to St. Mungo's early. She had a lot to do before the New Year.

She sat with her omelet and coffee, switching between _The Daily Prophet_ and a copy of _The New York Times_ she'd picked up, trying not to think about her new relationship with Charlie. She sighed, sipping her coffee and looking out the window at the still hazy morning. What were they getting themselves into?


	9. IX

"Charlie

Charlie groaned audibly, resting his head on his palm, looking forlornly at his mother. "Charles, I'm not going to let you go gallivanting off with Leah or the twins just because you're complaining. You have to help with your sister's wedding!"

Ginny turned around to look at her brother from in front of the mirror, sticking her tongue out at him, "Come on, you're supposed to be picking out the tuxes and the favors so you can go and order them, yea?" She turned towards her mother, "Too flouncy."

Mrs. Weasley sighed, "Ginny, darling, you've tried on ten dresses already!"

Ginny pouted, heading into the dressing room again, "Come on, Mum, I'm only getting married once it has to be perfect!"

Charlie rolled his eyes at his mother. This was only his first day of dress shopping with Ginny, but his second day "helping out", and he was already bored. "Mum, come on, it'll be time for New Year's Eve celebrations soon…"

Mrs. Weasley waved her hand in dismissal. "Stop it, Charlie, you know Mira, Leah and Hermione are going to try on their dresses."

"What about Luna?" Ginny shouted from her dressing room.

"She's busy tonight, remember? She'll come tomorrow."

Charlie groaned, "So why do I have to stay for their fittings?"

Mrs. Weasley looked astonished. "Well, don't you want to see Leah in her dress?"

Charlie rolled his eyes at his mother, "Really Mum…"

Mrs. Weasley shrugged, flipping through a catalog of different bouquets and flower arrangements. She and Ginny had speedily done the invitations in a matter for hours, thanks to the help from Fleur and magic. "Well, you have to stay Charlie, you're part of this family, you're not working, and we need at least one man's opinion on everything."

Charlie put his head in both of his hands, rubbing his eyes. "Fine, fine, but Merlin, Ginny, _how_ many more dresses do you have to try on?"

Hermione rushed in than, "Did she find the dress yet?" she asked breathlessly.

Mrs. Weasley was shaking her head when Ginny stepped from the dressing room, "Found it."

Charlie looked up at his sister, and grinned. She _did_ look absolutely beautiful, better than she did in the other dresses, and he saw a certain glow about her. She was beaming. He looked to his right and saw his mother and his sister's best friend, and probable future-sister-in-law silently crying. Apparently, his baby sister had found her perfect wedding dress.

As Mrs. Weasley and Hermione were fawning over Ginny, telling her how beautiful she looked in the dress, Mira and Leah walked in. Noticing the tears, Leah tapped Charlie's arm silently, "What's going on?"

Charlie grinned, "She found her dress."

Mira rolled her eyes at Leah who smacked her arm lightly, making Charlie laugh. He couldn't understand how these two were actually best friends with his sister and Hermione. Leah cleared her throat, "Gin, you look _stunning_."

Ginny beamed at her friends. "Gorg, Ginny, gorgeous. And that cut!"

Leah nodded, "Not too extravagant -"

"Not _too_ simple -"

"_Very_ Ginny Weasley," Leah finished.

Ginny smiled, correcting her, "Very Ginny Potter, you mean."

Leah grinned, standing next to the bride-to-be, "Of course, of course," she looked at Ginny's reflection in the mirror. "He's never going to know what hit him when you walk down that aisle."

Ginny grinned, turning to her three friends, "Mum, grab Madame Porter, tell her my friends are here for their fittings."

Mira groaned, "Can't we just try on some dresses?"

Ginny smiled, "Course! They have a whole selection of different cuts in the color I chose, but you have to try them on so they can fit them better, cut them to the right lengths, all that."

Leah walked back to stand next to Charlie, kissing him lightly on the lips. "How was your day?"

He groaned, hugging her tightly, "Miserable. I had to deal with this wedding all day, and I didn't get to see you."

Leah grinned, smiling up at him, "Well you'll get to see me all night."

Charlie frowned, "But not all tomorrow?"

"Come, come, I have to work a little bit, yes?"

Charlie pouted playfully, "You don't _have_ to…"

Leah rolled her eyes at him as Madame Porter waltzed in rolling in what seemed like endless amount of dresses on a rack. Mira groaned, "Merlin, do we have to try on _all_ of these?"

Madame Porter laughed, her extremely curly hair bouncing as she threw her head back. Leah looked at Charlie, her mouth open in disbelief. "Is she real?" she mouthed. Charlie put his hand over his mouth, trying hard not to laugh. "Of course not ladies! Pick a few that you like best and try them on!" She looked Hermione up and down quickly and handed her a dress, "These will be perfect for you, miss. Not too low cut, not too short, perfect, yes?"

Hermione barely managed to squeak at a yes, when the witch turned to Mira, who crossed her arms, her eyebrow cocked in defiance. Leah rolled her eyes at her friend and looked at Charlie again, who was still trying desperately not to laugh. "Ah, yes, bubble skirt, maybe? Low cut?" She handed a few dresses to Mira who rolled her eyes and entered a dressing room.

The witch turned to Leah immediately, but before she could say anything, Leah held up her hand, "It honestly doesn't matter, give me a few that are different enough from theirs."

Madame Porter smiled, "Ah, yes, of course, strapless? Low back? Short?" She handed Leah a few dresses who took them, winked at Charlie and entered the last dressing room.

Mrs. Weasley thanked Madame Porter, and walked with her to the front of the store, telling Charlie to sit and wait, and for Ginny to wait for her fitting.

Charlie flipped through the catalog, not really paying attention as he waited for the girls to try on their dresses. He was anxious to see Leah in a dress, but really, he was more anxious to see her tonight at the party, for New Year's. He tried not to grin, but Ginny noticed.

"Charlie," she said slyly, walking over to his chair, "what are you grinning about?"

Charlie looked up at his sister, trying to appear innocent, "Don't sit in that, Gin."

Ginny rolled her eyes, "Like I'd do anything to ruin this perfect dress? Seriously though, why are you grinning? Excited to see Leah in her dress?"

Charlie smiled at his sister, "Sure, I guess."

Ginny hit his arm, "You really like her, don't you?"

Charlie shrugged, "I thought you all knew that already."

Ginny smiled, crossing her arms. "My favorite brother is in love!"

Charlie rolled his eyes, "Gin, come on, huh? Cut it out," he paused, "look, it's just been a while since I was with someone I -cared - about at New Year's. And even Christmas. And I'm not sure, it's exciting I guess, isn't it?"

Ginny grinned again. She wasn't convinced by Charlie's cover-up. She knew that the two of them were probably falling for each other, whether they'd admit it or not.

Hermione walked out of the dressing room first, "I think I like this better than the others, what do you think?"

Ginny hurried over to her friend, "Oh, Mione, you look beautiful!"

"You look great, Hermione!" Charlie agreed from his chair.

Hermione smiled at the two, "Thanks, you guys, you don't think it's too, oh, I don't know?"

Ginny grinned, "You look wonderful, Mione!"

Mira stepped out next wearing a long, very low cut version of the dress Hermione was wearing, a very bright turquoise that looked managed to work both on Hermione with her pale skin and chestnut brown hair, and on Mira with her tan skin and jet-black hair. She smiled at Ginny, "Think they could maybe shorten it?"

Ginny laughed, "How short, Mira?"

Mira laughed too and looked at Hermione, "Oh, Mione, you look gorgeous!"

Hermione laughed, "And you do too, Mira! Why shorten it?"

Mira looked at herself in the mirror and without looking at him said to Charlie, "Too long for a bridesmaid dress, right Charlie?"

Charlie shrugged, "I guess. It would look better shorter."

Mira pulled up the fabric, "I'm thinking to about here, right? Right above my knees? Is that conservative enough?"

Ginny nodded, "I think so, but we'll ask the professionals, yea?"

The two bridesmaids were still looking at themselves in the mirror when Leah walked out. Charlie looked up immediately, putting down the catalog he was flipping through. Leah looked up at him quickly, and grinned, turning to her friends. "Well? What do we think?"

Mira frowned, "It's a little boring, in the front, isn't it?"

Leah cocked an eyebrow and turned around. Charlie let out a low whistle and Mira laughed, "Damn, Leah!"

Ginny grinned too, "Who knew you had such a fine back?"

Leah rolled her eyes, turning around again, "Is it okay for your wedding party, Gin?"

Ginny grinned, "If you like it, I like it."

Leah smiled, "I like it." She turned to Mira, "You're shortening that, right?"

Mira laughed, "Sure am. We're like sisters though, I've got that low front, and you've got the low back."

Leah turned to Hermione, "Oh, Mione, that halter cut looks so good on you!"

Hermione smiled, "You don't think it's too, I don't know, boring compared to you two?"

Leah laughed, "No! Come on, from the front, people will just see me in this boring round neck turquoise dress!"

"With a cute little bubble skirt!"

Leah smiled, "You don't think it's too much?"

Ginny shook her head, "It's perfect! And than Luna can have strapless, which she usually loves anyway, so it's perfect!" She waved the ladies in to take their fittings, "Mira and Hermione, you two first, since you two were first, and Leah, yours looks almost perfect anyway." Mira, Hermione and Ginny were grabbed up in a rush of fabric, pins, seamstresses, and Mrs. Weasley. Charlie looked at Leah, and nodded his head towards him.

She walked over, careful not to interrupt the other ladies. "You like it?" she asked, twirling in front of him.

Charlie grinned, eyeing her back and her legs as she turned, finally letting his eyes travel back up to her face, "Remind me to thank Ginny for getting married."

Leah laughed quietly and stood on her tiptoes for a quick kiss. "I'm glad you like it, Mr. Weasley."

"_I_ knew your back was this nice," he whispered in her ear, drawing circles on her exposed skin.

Leah shivered slightly, "Not here, Charlie, we'll have plenty of time tonight, yea?"

Charlie nodded, kissing her cheek, "This dress looks _amazing_ on you, Leah. You look much sexier than Hermione and Mira."

Leah slapped his arm playfully, "Of course you'd think that, Charlie, now come on, I got to have my fitting, and than I've got to get ready for the party tonight."

Charlie frowned again, "Why can't you just wear what you were wearing before?"

Leah rolled her eyes, "I can't even shower since I was working all day?"

Charlie shook his head, "I don't mind you dirty."

Leah laughed and walked over to where the ladies were finishing fitting Mira and Hermione, "I'm going to pretend you never said that," she turned to look at him again, "are you going to pick me up tonight?"

Charlie grinned, "Would I make you go to the twins' by yourself?"

Leah rolled her eyes and stepped on the small stool, raising her arms at the ladies' request.

--

Mira and Leah managed to leave shortly after they were done with their dress fittings, "What are you wearing tonight?"

Mira glanced at her best friend as they walked down the cobblestone road towards Mira's flat. "You really do like him, don't you?"

Leah sighed and looked at her friend, "What I can't ask what you're wearing? I haven't been with someone I even remotely like on New Years in a long time, okay?"

Mira chuckled, "Probably just a black dress and heels. It's just at the twins' flat."

Leah nodded, "I was thinking a casual dress too."

Mira nodded and said softly, "You can talk to me about it you know."

Leah saw the concern in Mira's eyes, "I know, thanks, Mira," she paused, "I just, don't want to think about it too much, you know? We don't even really talk about it." Mira nodded, urging her to continue. "We're just seeing how this month goes, and than when it's time for him to go back to work, I don't know."

Mira stopped and pulled Leah into a hug. "Thing's will work out, Lee."

Leah laughed, trying to ease the tension. "I know, thanks." They continued walking. "How are things with George, now with all this wedding stuff?"

Mira tried not to grin, "Well, apparently Fred is having fits, because now he's worried about how he's going to top Harry's proposal."

Leah laughed, "It shouldn't be that hard, should it?"

Mira laughed too, "No, Fred doesn't want it to be too big or anything, you know Hermione will want it to be simple and romantic and thoughtful."

Leah nodded, "Of course, of course, when does he think he's going to do it?"

Mira rolled her eyes, "Probably Valentine's Day, or maybe a little before to catch her off-guard. Soon after the wedding though."

"So have you and George talked about marriage?"

Mira grinned again, "He mentioned it in passing, and he knows I don't mind what we do, as long as he's happy," she paused, "but you know his mum won't want us to be living in sin much longer."

Leah laughed, "So? Are you guys going to get married?"

"We're not going to rush into it, of course. We like where we are now, you know? We're still young, so we don't need kids right away," she paused. "If he wants to get married once Ron and Luna do, we'll probably have a simple wedding, just the family and friends, maybe in the country," she sighed, "Merlin, do I sound like Hermione or what?"

Leah laughed and slung her arm around her best friend's shoulders, "No! You're doing it to make George happy! I know you and George love the country almost as much as I do! So to want to get married there? To be thinking about it amongst all bonanza of wedding craziness? You don't sound like Hermione at all. You sound like my little Mira."

Mira laughed, "All right, all right, now, come on, enough wedding talk! Go get prettied up so we can ring in the New Year!"

--

Leah was touching up her mascara when there was a knock on the door. "Coming!" She yelled as she ran barefoot to open the door. Charlie wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her before she even had a chance to see what he was wearing.

"I missed you," he whispered against her cheek, kissing her jaw.

Leah smiled, threading her hands through his red hair, "I missed you too," she kissed his lips again before falling back on the balls of her feet, "come on, I have to put my shoes on and we can go." She walked back to her room as Charlie closed the door, following her.

"We don't have to go yet," he said from her bedroom doorway as she sat down on her bed putting her bright blue heels on. She stood up and he took in her simple navy strapless dress that ended about mid-thigh. He grinned, "You," he caressed her cheek with his thumb, "look beautiful," he kissed her lips softly, tilting her head back slightly, backing them towards her bed.

She pulled away slowly, "Charlie, come on, it took me a long time to fix my hair and get my make-up done," he moved his hand slowly and lightly from her waist, up her back and to her shoulder.

He pulled away, grinning, "Well, than, come on. I'm hungry, and apparently the twins' got tons of food from Luna."

Leah rolled her eyes, "So, what, food will get your mind off sex?"

Charlie laughed, walking towards the front door, holding her coat open, "No, I'm always thinking about having sex with you."

"When you're not thinking about food-"

"Or dragons, sure," he grinned boyishly and Leah's heart almost melted. He really was too good-looking for his own good.

--

It was 10:30 and Leah was laughing with George when Oliver, Katie, Angelina, Alicia and Lee finally arrived. Charlie took another drink of his firewhiskey, listening to something Ron was saying and watched Leah greet everyone. But he especially watched her greet Oliver. He knew that he had nothing to worry about - Mira had said that they really had only worked as friends, but he was still a little perturbed. The rest of the guys that were here were his family, or going to soon be his family. But not Oliver. From the way he was laughing with her, his hand around her waist like it had been at the club that first night, it didn't seem very brotherly. He turned back to Ron, trying to pay attention, but his gaze traveled back to Leah who was now talking with Angelina and Lee about something. Why was he so worried about Leah and Oliver? Weren't things good with them now? It's not like she didn't talk to other men. Men loved her - or they must - why wouldn't they? She, like Mira, were nearly perfect. Very relaxed, very laid-back, not too girly.

He finished the rest of his firewhiskey in a gulp, unaware that Ron watched him, open mouth. "Charlie, you all right? I mean, I know it's New Years, but…"

Charlie turned to his brother, trying to smile, "I'm fine, just wanted to finish that drink, been nursing it for a while." Ron nodded, unconvinced. "Seen Mira?"

Leah had turned back to talk to George again, to continue their conversation, but Oliver grabbed her attention again. "Leah, how have you been? Haven't seen you since the club."

Leah grinned, "Been working, hanging around with Charlie, things like that."

Oliver raised his eyebrows, "So things with you and the Dragon-tamer are going well?"

Leah tried not to blush, the alcohol slowly starting to hit her, "Yea, they are," she paused, "they really are." She looked around briefly, "Didn't bring a date this year?"

Oliver shook his head, "Couldn't snag one in time," he paused, cocking an eyebrow and quickly moving his eyes over Leah's entire body without her noticing, "I had hoped you'd be single this year too, but I forgot Charlie was still around."

Leah looked indignant, and she wasn't kidding. She opened her mouth to rip Oliver a new one when George, overhearing what Oliver had just said, intervened. "Leah, dah-ling, I was looking for you, Oliver, I think Katie was looking for you, go get yourself a drink, will you?"

Oliver nodded, confused, and George grabbed Leah's arm, "He - he - did you hear - how _dare_ - let me _at_ him - George!" She struggled to get out of his tight grasp, to stick her heel in Oliver's gut, to yell at him, to remind him she wasn't just a piece of meat.

George dragged her over to a couch and sat her down. "Leah, I know, calm down, he's being a bloody arse, but I will not have any fights at my party, and well, maybe you don't know, but if Charlie sees that he pissed you off, whether you could take him or not, he'd beat Oliver to a bloody pulp."

Leah frowned, taking a sip of her wine. "I could handle it."

George smiled, chucking her under the chin, "I know you can, kid, but Charlie's emotions would get the best of him, wouldn't they? He likes you too much to let you have all the fun."

Leah pouted, "Why is he being a jerk?"

"Who, Oliver? He was always a jerk. Well, sometimes. Especially with the ladies. Maybe you never noticed at these functions because you'd be sloshed and would just want some ass too."

Leah put her head in her hands. "You're probably right," she stood up, "Merlin, I hope Charlie didn't see. You don't think he knows do you?"

"That you had sex with Oliver?"

Leah sat down, "What does it matter anyway, right? He won't be jealous if I talk to other guys that are single, right?"

George shrugged, "I was jealous at first, with Mira, but I realized, well, tons of men like her, you know?"

Leah laughed and nodded, "They _do_ really like Mira," she nudged George's shoulder, "why did she ever settle for you?"

"Ha-ha-ha, very funny, Ms. Cooper. Please, keep your day job, won't you?"

"My two day jobs you mean?"

Charlie found Mira at the food table, "Hey, Mira? You don't think Leah still has feelings for Oliver or anything, do you?" Mira nearly spat out her food she laughed so hard. "What?" Charlie asked.

Mira stood up and looked at Charlie, still laughing. "No, she definitely doesn't," she paused and saw Charlie's actual concern. "Why?"

Charlie shrugged, "I don't know, it's just that he's the only single guy, who's not my brother or Harry, who I've seen her talk and flirt with is all, and I know they dated for a while."

Mira waved her hand, "I wouldn't call it dating, I mean, I don't know if you think it makes this any better, but I know it would for me - but all it was was meaningless sex. They had sex a few times, not even that many, just when she was really stressed out at work and things. But they haven't for what, oh, Merlin, over a year?" She looked up at the ceiling, trying to figure it out. "Yea, they did about two summers ago a few times, when she was really stressed at work - well, more so than usual - and than last New Years she had a really tough time. Single, another crappy Christmas, so she real hammered and brought Oliver home. And than was the last time."

Charlie nodded, "I suppose that makes me feel a little better."

Mira turned to Charlie again and looked him straight in the eye. "Charlie, I know we don't know each other very well - which I really hope we can work on, by the way - but Leah really, really likes you. Trust me. And she really doesn't flirt with guys," she put up a hand to keep him quiet. "She doesn't mean to, unless she's really interested in them. And flirt with Oliver? No, she wouldn't do that," she paused again, popping a grape in her mouth. "She's just like the twins, and like me, I suppose, and maybe like you," she grinned, "we're just too cool, too amazing for our own good, and our friendliness just attracts people. And I know that Leah is a big believer in guys and girls being friends, which she should be. Guys _love_ to be her friend. Or, at least, that's what she believes. All through Hogwarts? No boyfriends," she paused. "Why am I telling you this again?"

Charlie smiled widely, "You were trying to help me understand that she doesn't like Oliver."

Mira nodded, smiling, "Course, course. She doesn't. She's crazy for you, you know. She won't admit it, but I know her history with guys. She'd date you for longer than a month, even with no sex." Mira grabbed a few appetizers and walked away, leaving Charlie to his thoughts.

Charlie found Leah and George talking with Angelina on the couch, "Leah, care for another drink?"

Leah stood up and maneuvered her way around the couch, putting her arm around Charlie's waist, "And where have you been?"

Charlie grinned, putting his arm around her shoulders, "Talking with Mira about you, and your no boyfriends in Hogwarts."

Leah groaned, "Oh, no! Why did she tell you that?"

Charlie laughed, "She was a little tipsy, I think, and I think it came out. Something about you not thinking guys liked you."

Leah waved her hand, pouring herself a glass of champagne. "Well, in Hogwarts, when I was younger, guys did only want to be my friend. Well, granted, not the Slytherins, or the rich, snooty kids who didn't like that I was poor, but they thought I was cool for having read comic books, and I could help them with their homework, and than when I got older, they liked that I could drink firewhiskey with the best of them, could play Quidditch pretty well," she paused and winked at Charlie, "for a Chaser, I was pretty aggressive." She took a sip of champagne, "And I think by that time, they were so used to seeing me as that cool kid who they forgot was a girl, that when I started wearing make-up and things, they didn't exactly know how to feel about me. So I just stayed being their friend."

Charlie kissed her cheek, "I'm sure they were just too intimidated by your beauty, and your brains -"

"And my all around amazingness?" She laughed and leaned her body into Charlie's. "You were jealous that I was talking to Oliver earlier, weren't you?"

Charlie nodded, nestling his head on her shoulder, "I didn't mean to be."

Leah nodded, resting her head next to his, looking out at the party, "I'm glad that none of your ex-girlfriends, or sex-buddies or whatever, aren't here. I might rip their eyes out."

Charlie chuckled, his rumbling chest sending vibrations through her body. "I didn't have that many ex-girlfriends. And they were mostly to keep my brothers quiet anyway. I didn't like any of them as much as I like you."

Leah turned around in Charlie's arms, bringing her arms around his neck, still holding her glass. "And for all my non-ex-boyfriends, and sex-buddies, I think I like you best," she grinned, her eyes flickering to his own grin, "we're getting sappy, aren't we?"

Charlie leaned down to kiss her briefly, "I'm fine with it if you are."

Leah grinned, "I'm fine with it."


	10. X

George turned the music down as Fred stood on a chair, tapping his beer glass with his wand, "Everyone! We're five minutes from midnight, so if everyone will go outside on the terrace, we've put heat shields up, darling," Hermione blushed, bowing her head to sip her wine, "we'll be able to see the fireworks from Muggle London."

Leah maneuvered her way around everyone to find Charlie who was talking to George near the "music-box". She snuck her arm around his back and he turned around, grinning, "George here just told me how he had to restrain you from pummeling Oliver."

Leah's eyes widened, "Oh, you weren't supposed to find out about that," she glared briefly at George who decided it was time to find Mira, "he said you'd beat him to a bloody pulp."

Charlie shrugged and led her to the terrace, "He left, George let it slip." He wrapped his arm tighter around Leah's waist, "I wouldn't have hurt him to bad," he looked down at her and smiled, "I mean, if you wanted to have a go, I would have let you go."

Leah cocked an eyebrow, "I could have taken him."

Charlie laughed as they reached the wire fence of the terrace, "I know you could have, why do you think I'm trying to stay on your good side?"

Leah turned to face Charlie as the others started the countdown, "I've never had a real date at New Year's."

Charlie leaned down, bringing his lips closer to hers as he stared into her eyes, "Neither have I." Leah grinned, wrapping her arms around his neck as everyone else on the terrace shouted, "Happy New Year!"

"Happy New Year, Charlie."

"Happy New Year, Leah."

---------------------

Leah rolled over the next morning, groaning as her alarm went off. She slapped the alarm and rolled back, snuggling against Charlie's bare chest again. "Work?" he mumbled, wrapping his arms around her waist, drawing her closer.

She nodded against his chest, "I don't want to go!"

Charlie laughed, causing Leah's head to bounce slightly against his chest. "You love going to work."

She groaned, trying to detach herself, "I know, but I'm tired," she sighed, "want to come in with me?"

Charlie laughed again as he watched her sit up and slip on his shirt, "I don't think so, I'm sleeping in," he grinned as Leah pouted, walking out of her bedroom and into the bathroom to take a quick shower. He closed his eyes again, and fell asleep, not noticing when Leah kissed his forehead before she left for St. Mungo's.

------------

Leah was sitting in her office, absentmindedly chewing her pen, absorbed in numerous files when there was a knock on her door. "It's open!" she shouted, not bothering to look up, assuming it was a brown-nosing trainee who wanted to get on her good side, or a new nurse who was unsure if they needed her approval to change a bedpan. She didn't look up until the visitor coughed.

She started to stand, her brown eyes nearly bulging, her mouth opened in shock as she tried to say something.

"Surprised to see me?" A tall, dark-haired man grinned, his dark grey-indigo eyes twinkling.

Leah stood up fully, "Well, wow, kinda, yea, Merlin, _Reed_?" She laughed and threw her arms around his neck, "What are you doing back? Are you done saving the poor already?"

Reed laughed and held Leah at arm's length to look at her, "Of course I'm not, I just came back for a quick vacation," he grinned again and Leah noticed his dark hair was longer than it used to be and it had started to grey slightly, something that made Reed look even more attractive than she remembered. "But look at you!" He let her go and looked around her office, "I know you're not going to tell me any of your accomplishments, so let me see you resume."

Leah tried not to blush, and brushed her shirt, trying to make herself look more presentable without Reed noticing. She opened a drawer and sheepishly handed Reed a sheet of paper. Reed cocked an eyebrow and smiled, "I'm surprised it's only one sheet." Leah refrained from sticking her tongue out at him and instead motioned for him to sit in one of the plush chairs across from her desk. She sat down again and watched Reed read from under her lashes while pretending to read her original files.

"Well, Lee, you haven't failed to surprise me, although," she watched as he looked up, grinning slyly, "you're only part of three departments? I thought you'd force yourself onto at least 4 or 5."

Leah rolled her eyes, "I see you haven't changed at all, have you?"

Reed stood up and perused the books on her shelf, "And I still you still take, read and keep any old, irrelevant, nonsensical books you can find." He turned and smiled, "Tell me about your Board."

Leah waved her hand, "I know you don't care about my Board Reed, you made it very clear that you had no interest in Boards, only in Departments."

Reed sat down in the chair again. He stared into Leah's eyes, making her slightly uncomfortable; Reed always had the ability to make her squirm, make her unsure of herself, and she didn't particularly like it. "Now, now, Leah that's not true. I know you want to hear all about my time in South America," he held up a hand before Leah could even open her mouth, "but first I want to hear about your Board. When can you take time for lunch?"

Leah shook her head, "No, no, not today, I'm leaving here as early as I possibly can, which is going to be later than I would have liked since you are preventing me from getting my work done."

There was a knock on the door, but this time Leah turned to see who was coming in now. "Charlie! What are you doing here?"

Charlie grinned, "I thought I'd surprise you and take you for," he turned towards Reed who was making his presence known by standing up. He looked at Leah, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt."

"Oh, Charlie, no, please, this is Reed Stanton, he used to be a Healer here," she tried to keep her composure at this increasingly awkward situation, "he was actually one of my mentors." Reed stuck his hand out. "And this is Charlie Weasley, he's a Dragon Keeper."

Reed nodded, "And I'm assuming brother of Leah's old bosses?"

"Oh, I still work there, Reed," she turned to Charlie, feeling the need to explain everything to him, knowing how upset he had gotten over Oliver only the night before. "Reed left St. Mungo's right as I got my license."

Reed smiled at Leah, "She was practically _my_ mentor! And I knew that she'd knock me out of my Plants or Magical Creatures seats some day. So it was the perfect time for me to go to South America."

"Oh? Do you heal there?"

Reed nodded, "I help train healers in poorer areas, I was just actually in Brazil, in the Amazon, training some of the younger generations of the tribe to heal."

Leah tucked her hair behind her ear, trying not to stress about the current situation. Could anything get more awkward?

Charlie sighed, "Well, I didn't mean to interrupt your reunion, so I'll just head down to the cottage, see how Bill and Fleur celebrated the New Year," he avoided Leah's eyes and put his hand out again. "It was a pleasure meeting you, Reed," he turned to Leah, his eyes hard, causing her to wince slightly, "I'll see you later?"

Leah did not get to answer however, because Charlie had already left before she could say anything. Reed let out a low whistle, "Am I missing something?"

Leah shook her head, "No, no, it's fine," she smiled, "you want to hear about my Board or what?"

--------------

Leah and Reed had walked to Fran's Tea Shoppe in relative silence. She should have known that he would want to eat at "their" place, "their" own little Muggle café. She thought about Charlie as they walked. She hadn't told anyone about Reed: not even Mira knew. It wasn't that Leah was embarrassed of him. But their relationship, if you could call it that, had been all about work and sex: he was her mentor, her advisor, and she slept with him. On numerous occasions. St. Mungo's wouldn't have fired them, but it would have been frowned upon. Both of their Healing reputation could have been tarnished, no matter how blatantly intelligent they were. What could she tell Charlie? If he knew the truth, he'd be understanding, but furious that she was seeing him. And what could she tell Reed? She didn't know if he wanted to pick up where they had left off. And anyway, she and Charlie weren't actually dating, were they? They had never said explicitly that they were exclusive, so what could she tell Reed if she asked?

They sat down in "their" booth, in the far corner of the dimly-lit café. Reed took off his coat, his grey-indigo eyes twinkling. "You look fantastic, by the way."

Leah blushed, "You don't look so bad yourself. Brazil must have agreed with you."

"Venezuela, Ecuador and Peru too."

Leah laughed as she opened her menu, "Are we bragging now?"

Reed pushed her menu down, forcing her to look up at him. "Leah."

Leah cocked an eyebrow, terribly confused. "Reed."

His face was serious, his eyes somber and Leah noticed how worn and tired he looked. "I'm sorry I left without saying goodbye."

Leah tore her eyes away from his. "Reed, come on. That's in the past, you did what you thought was best. For both of us."

"Leah, just look at me, please," he pleaded, making Leah turn back, "I was afraid someone was going to find out. I didn't want your reputation to get ruined. It wouldn't be fair to you, or St. Mungo's, or all the patients that you would save," he sighed heavily and put his hand on the table.

Leah put her hand on top of his to comfort him, "I know, Reed. I'm not upset, really. It's in the past now. We both have our dream jobs," she smiled, "you're helping the poor in South America, and I've got my departments and my Board."

Reed smiled weakly, squeezing her hand. "Thanks, Leah," he sighed. "Are you getting your usual?"

Leah laughed, "Please, Reed, do you still think I'm that predictable?"

"I never said you were, Lee," he paused, "so that Charlie guy…"

Leah rolled her eyes and looked up from her menu again, "You're relentless, aren't you? What do you want the full story?"

Reed leaned back in his chair, "I just want to hear all about your life since I've been gone, that's all. It's been a few years."

Leah sighed dramatically, "Let me order my sandwich and soup first please?"

They ordered their food and than Leah took a deep breath, "So you saw my resume, so you know all about my departments and my Board, and I assume you realize the tantrums I had to throw in order to get some of the new laws and things implemented around the hospital."

Reed laughed, "You didn't throw any tantrums, please. The administration loves you and your progressive ways and they would do anything you ask."

"Oh, please! They won't integrate the Non-Magical Beings Department: I've been making statements and holding meetings to get it integrated since I've been heading it."

"Did you make Head as soon as you got your license?"

Leah blushed and looked down at her hands, "Practically."

Reed let out a whistle, "Merlin, I guess _none_ of my accomplishments and records have been left intact, have they?"

Leah laughed and swatted at his arm, "Quiet. But no, probably not," she laughed as he pouted. "Do you want me to continue or do you want to pout?"

"Fine, fine, I'll sulk later, continue."

"I kept my job at WWW, mainly to help train the new employees, and to take my mind off St. Mungo's every once in a while. And I played matchmaker a few times too," she smile ruefully, "got one of the twins to date my best friend-"

"And they're still together?"

Leah huffed, "Yes! What you doubt my skills as a matchmaker? I'll have you know that all those that I have introduced to each other during Hogwarts, in my Muggle neighborhood, at St. Mungo's, with my friends, that have all gone on to either get married, move-in together, or date for a very long period of time and only amicably split."

Reed nodded, his eyes twinkling, "I never doubted you, just wanted clarification, but please continue."

"So both my bosses are happily dating, I helped their younger sister get through training here. I'm what you could say a rather good mentor: my reputation has apparently gotten many trainees to try to bribe or brown-nose their way to become one of my protégés." She groaned, "It's like a competition."

"How many protégés have you had?"

"Just Mira and Ginny - my best friend and the youngest Weasley. And it's not like I did it on purpose. I just introduced them to Healer Lang. They really are very intelligent, very apt Healers, so I really didn't do anything."

Reed shook his head and tried not to laugh, "Course, course. But this Charlie guy?"

Leah cocked an eyebrow, "Why are you so interested in my love life all of a sudden, Reed? You _are_ going back to Brazil, aren't you?"

Reed nodded, "I am, and yes, I have a, what I suppose could count as a girlfriend of sorts down there," he sighed, knowing Leah was going to press, "she went home for the holidays, to America, and I got lonely and bored, and since she's not coming back until February, I decided to find a cheap Portkey and come back to rainy ol' England for a few weeks." He stared at her, "Now continue?"

Leah laughed, holding on to her stomach, "Who would have thought that the two workaholic Healers would finally get some sort of romance?" She sighed, "Well, Charlie's not really my boyfriend. We've just been having a bit of fun while he's in England."

"Oh?"

Leah took a sip of her tea, "He's a Dragon Keeper in Romania, and he also gets shite for not having a girlfriend from his whole family. And since all the Weasleys give me shite too, and since we're both workaholics, and we were the only single ones over the holidays-"

"And I know how much you enjoy the holidays."

Leah grimaced, "Well, we really get along, you know?" She smiled to herself, "He gets me, Reed, and I get him, and it's just-"

"Nice?" He sighed. "I completely understand. I didn't have a social life for a long time either, Leah, I understand."

Leah chuckled, "I still don't, Reed."

She looked at her watch, "Oh, bollocks, Charlie is probably thinking that I'm going to have sex with you or something," she paused, "Merlin. Reed, can we catch up soon? And just so you know?" She paused and looked into his deep grey-indigo eyes and tried not to think about their tumultuous past, "No one knows about you. So, just, if you visit St. Mungo's, let's be professional okay? You're going to be here for the Fundraiser?"

Reed grimaced, "I'm sure Healer Lang and Murphy will corral me into going, yes. Giving some sort of speech or update or something."

Leah nodded, "Good. I better run, but I want to hear all about your work soon, okay?"

Leah left quickly, afraid that if she didn't talk to Charlie soon, he might either get the wrong idea, or worse, ask someone about who Reed was. And she couldn't have that - she knew it wasn't a big deal, and she didn't think anyone would judge her any differently, but she couldn't risk it. They'd be more mad at her for not telling them, especially Mira.

----------

A/N: Reviews? Read "How Things Began" to see who Reed is - I've just begun their "relationship". Thoughts? Complaints? PLEASE REVIEW!


	11. XI

It was moments like this when Leah wished wizards used phones. She thought frantically to herself where Charlie would be right now. He said he was going to Bill's, but was he still there? And if he was, how was she to get there? She had never been to Bill and Fleur's cottage before so she couldn't Apparate there. She groaned, ready to Apparate to WWW, wishing, yet again, that she was connected to the Floo.

"George? Fred?" She yelled as walked in the door, "How do I get to Bill and Fleur's?"

"Why?" One of them yelled from the back room.

She refrained from yelling, bursting through the door, "Just bloody tell me please I need to see Charlie."

George looked up from his desk, cocking an eyebrow, visibly concerned, "Um, you _do_ remember we're having lunch at the Burrow in like half an hour, right?"

Leah nodded, trying to seem calm and collected, "Oh, right, yes, yes, of course, I need to go get changed, um, I'll see you two later than yea?"

Leah walked out of the store, rubbing her forehead and muttering to herself. Fred turned to his twin, "What the bloody hell was that?"

George shrugged, "I don't want to get involved."

--------

Leah ran into her flat, throwing her bag down and ripping her shoes off before stumbling into her room to change her clothes. How could she have forgotten the Weasley luncheon? Cursing quietly to herself, she threw on a pair of skinny black jeans, slipping on flats and throwing on a shirt and cardigan. Crunched for time, she used her wand to put her make-up on with magic, something she rarely did. Grabbing some things out of her bag and shoving them into her clutch, she grabbed her peacoat and scarf, and Apparated to the lane outside the Burrow.

She walked slowly up the lane, hoping she wasn't late, and hoping she'd get a chance to talk to Charlie before the lunch. Leah looked up; the sky was grey, not a very good omen for the afternoon.

"Oh, Charlie, could you get the door? I need to take this casserole out of the oven-"

Charlie opened the front door, turned towards the kitchen to answer his mother when a soft voice said, "Hullo, Charlie." He turned, silent towards Leah.

"Hullo," he said quiet and awkwardly.

"Oh, Charlie, who is it?"

"Just Leah, Mum." Leah frowned at his response and stepped over the threshold, "Can I talk to you for a minute, Charlie, please?"

Charlie nodded, "'Bout what?"

She followed him into the kitchen and glanced at Mrs. Weasley who was busying herself with the food, "Charlie," she said quietly, loosening her scarf, "could we talk somewhere private?"

Charlie shrugged and walked into the living room. "What did you want to talk about?"

Leah sighed, shrugging off her coat, "Well this, for instance, yea? That guy, Reed? He was just my mentor when I was first starting out at St. Mungo's. He worked in the Plants and Magical Creatures Departments, and he was nice to me, wasn't stiff and old like the other Healers, you know?"

Charlie nodded, "And you hadn't seen him in a while, I understand."

Leah frowned and stepped closer to him to say softly, "Than why are you still upset? Don't you believe me?"

Charlie glanced at her face, at her eyes, before looking away again, "There's no reason I shouldn't."

Leah sighed, "And yet you don't." She reached out to touch his arm, "Charlie, Merlin, he was a mentor, he left years ago, he was the only one who was my mentor and my friend during that first year of training, do you understand?" She stepped to the side so that he couldn't help but look at her. "Charlie, I need you to believe me. It was in the past, we caught up, he's only here a few weeks, and than he's going back to Brazil," she paused as something dawned on her. "And you're only here a few weeks…"

"I need to go see if Mum needs help." He walked into the kitchen before Leah could stop him. She followed him into the kitchen and frowned when she saw that everyone else had arrived. Mrs. Weasley had everyone sit down, and Mira gave her friend a concerned look when she saw how indifferent Charlie was being towards her.

Leah barely heard the toast Mr. Weasley was giving to his daughter and his future son-in-law, she watched Charlie out of the corner of her eye, wanting to shake him, to make him understand how she really felt about him, what she didn't feel for Reed. She and Charlie ate in silence as everyone else talked about the upcoming nuptials and all that needed to still be done. Mira tried to get Leah's attention, to no avail.

When everyone was almost done eating, and Mira was still unable to grab Leah's attention, she cleared her throat and stared at Leah, "Oi, Leah, are you all right? You and Charlie haven't made a peep all afternoon."

Leah shook her head and tried to smile at her friend, "I'm fine, yea, it was just, a long day at the hospital, that's all."

"And I ran into Steve and Erin."

"Who?" Mira and Hermione asked at the same time.

Bill laughed, apparently unaware of the tension between Leah and Charlie. "Erin was one of Charlie's ex-girlfriends, she was a year younger than him in Gryffindor, and she married Steve, one of Charlie's Housemates a few years ago, right?"

Charlie nodded, "They have a kid."

"And you're okay with that, Charlie?" Hermione asked.

"Yea, course," he shrugged, taking a sip of pumpkin juice.

Leah put her fork down and laughed softly, causing Mira and George to stare at her: Mira looked concerned, but George looked frightened. Leah turned to Charlie, clearly annoyed, her mouth open and her eyes wide, "So you're okay with getting lunch and catching up with an ex-girlfriend who's currently married to and fathered your friend's baby, but you're not okay with me catching up with my old mentor, who lives in _Brazil_, and who has a girlfriend?" She laughed again and took a sip of her own pumpkin juice.

"Maybe you guys should -" Mira started, but Charlie interrupted her.

"What are you trying to say, Leah?"

"You're jealous of a man who is eight years older than you, was my _mentor_ when I was first at St. Mungo's, when I was by myself, with no one else who understood why I had to work so hard and so much, why I wanted my job so badly, why I wanted to do well," she paused, and stared at Charlie, who was staring at his plate. Neither noticed that everyone else was completely silent, feeling terribly awkward to be savvy to such information. "He was my mentor Charlie, and yes, he was my friend, because he was different from the other Healers, just like me. He was younger, he was smart, he knew what it was like to give up your social life, to be completely devoted to your job. He was the only Healer who really took me under their wing, who wasn't confused by my dedication, who _respected_ me, even though I was young, a woman, and a Muggle. But he left Charlie, and I respected his decision. He was my friend, my mentor, but that was all. He had his own life to lead, he had his own dream to chase, just as I did mine. Was I mad at him for leaving one day without so much as a goodbye? No, Charlie because I didn't love him. And he knew that. He knew that I wouldn't leave St. Mungo's to follow him to South America."

Charlie turned to face her, still ignoring the rest of his family. "Leah, what are you saying?"

Leah looked into his eyes, and smiled slightly, "Charlie, I love you. And even though my career is important to me, you're more important," she laughed slightly, tucking her hair behind her ear, "but I guess I really didn't realize it until just now. I mean -" she stopped when she saw that Charlie wasn't smiling too.

"Leah, I love you too, but I don't want you to follow me to Romania, you're career is too important to you-"

Leah put a finger to his lips, "Charlie? Can we worry about that later?" She smiled, "I love you."

Charlie grinned, putting his hands on her face, "I love you." He kissed her fiercely, still unaware of his entire family sitting around the table, watching. Leah finally noticed the clapping, pulled away and whispered to Charlie, "Maybe we should go?"

Charlie nodded, "Sorry, does everybody mind?"

Mrs. Weasley wiped her eyes, "No, no, go, go! We'll see you soon enough!"

Leah laughed and pulled Charlie from his chair, grabbing their coats from the hall and racing outside. Charlie pulled her into his arms, wrapping his coat around her shoulders, kissing her fiercely again. Leah smiled against his lips, "I love you."

"I love you," he opened his eyes and stroked her cheek with her thumb, "it feels wonderful to say it."

"And mean it," she laughed and pulled him down the lane to the Apparation point," and don't worry, we'll talk about it later, okay?"

Charlie frowned and pulled her back to him, "I don't want you to leave St. Mungo's."

"And I don't want you to leave the Reserve," she paused, still grinning, "but I'm sure I can manage to get some vacation" she paused, standing on her toes to kiss him again, "or I can ask for that Sabbatical sooner."

"For your Board?"

She shrugged, staring to walk down the lane again, "No, not yet, Mira could be left in charge of that, but no, some of the Healers were thinking about letting me take any of my research, any of my distinctive cases to hospitals around Europe," she paused, grinning and grabbed Charlie's coat collar, pulling his face closer to hers. "Can we go back to my place now, Charlie?"

Charlie grinned, "I love you too, Leah."

--------------


	12. XII

Mira and George left the Burrow almost immediately after lunch. George turned to her as they walked down the lane to the Apparation point, "Love, what's wrong?"

Mira shook her head and tugged on his hand to keep walking, "Nothing, come on, I'm just tired, that's all. I have that meeting with Healer Lang tomorrow and I'm nervous, is all."

George didn't want to press, but he knew she was lying. And knowing Mira, he knew she wouldn't talk about it unless he asked her right now, before she could compose herself more and put up her defenses. He loved her, but sometimes she refused to talk about things. He stopped walking and grabbed her shoulders, forcing her to stop and look at him. He wrapped his arms around her waist, the wind whipping around them, "Come on, Mira, you know you can't lie to me, what's wrong?" He paused, "Is it Leah and Charlie?"

Mira frowned, "Why do you know me so well, George Weasley?" She sighed, "Who is this Reed guy? Had she ever mentioned him to you?"

George thought for a moment and shook his head, "I don't think so, no. She did say he was a Healer."

Mira frowned and hugged George back, her head resting on his shoulder, "She's never mentioned him to me either." She paused again. "And don't you think it's a little quick for the 'I love you's already? I mean, I don't know Charlie, but I know Leah, and well, I don't know…"

George frowned slightly, "I guess I didn't really think about that, but yea, I suppose it does seem quick…but we know they'd get along, and they did, and maybe since they're older, and they're afraid that they're going to lose each other…"

"That's the other thing, George, I mean I agree with Charlie. Leah said she'd sacrifice her job. That's not like Leah! Her job is everything to her! And sure, if she takes Sabbatical, or goes to other hospitals to teach and lecture or whatever, she won't be completely happy. And who knows how long Charlie is going to stay at the Reserve?"

George frowned and taking Mira's hand, they continued to walk to the Apparation point. "I completely agree, Mira, but maybe we should lay off harassing Leah right now - not that you were going to, love," he smiled at Mira's annoyed expression, "but they still have a few weeks before Charlie is expected back at the Reserve, so let's let them enjoy their time together for right now, yea?" He looked sideways at his girlfriend, "And maybe they really _do_ love each other, Ra."

Mira shoved him with her shoulder, "You know I hate when you call me that."

George grinned and squeezed her hand, "Why do you think I love to use it?"

--------------

Leah wrapped her arms around Charlie's waist, poking him slightly, "You still awake?"

Charlie opened one eye and smiled, "Now I am," he grinned, "what's on your mind, love?"

Leah grinned and traced a circle on his chest, "Just thinking that Mira and the twins probably think we're nuts."

Charlie laughed, "What but not Ginny, Hermione, Ron or Harry?"

Leah shrugged, leaning on her arm, "Ron and Harry probably already forgot, and Ginny and Hermione will think it's just utterly romantic, won't they?"

Charlie grinned, "You don't think it's romantic?"

Leah smiled, "In front of your family?" She tried not to blush, "And they'll all know we ran back to my place-"

Charlie laughed and sat up, pulling Leah to sit next to him against her headboard, "So? Everyone has sex," he laughed at her exasperated expression. "Oh, come on, they don't care. We all put up with it for everyone else, didn't we?"

"Mira's probably going to harass me tomorrow about Reed," she frowned, "and no, no one knew about him. I didn't want anyone to know - I, I was afraid it was going to ruin my reputation."

Charlie nodded, "You don't have to talk about it Lee, it's in the past, and the only reason I got so jealous was," he rubbed his face, clearly embarrassed, "I thought he was going to cut into what little time I had left with you," he tried to laugh.

Leah kissed him, trying to show him how much she really did care for him. "Charlie, he's just an old friend, really."

"A _really_ old friend."

"Oi!" Leah laughed, smacking his head lightly, "He's not _that_ old!"

Charlie laughed, "His hair was graying!"

Leah kissed him again, "Don't be jealous, Charlie. As much as he doesn't want to admit it, even now, I knew he was jealous of my accomplishments," she sighed, "he felt threatened by me, which is why I think he left when he did, before I would take a position he wanted or something," she shrugged, "anyway, it's in the past."

Charlie turned serious, "Are you going to be working with him now?"

"I honestly don't know. Healer Lang and Murphy might want him to stay around for the banquet, but I doubt they'll have me working with him too closely - if he as any lectures, I'll probably attend them, and they might have him tag-along with my department for a little while," she poked his side, "but _don't_ get jealous, Charlie! He has an American girlfriend, and trust me, he _rarely_ has girlfriends. So he must really like this girl." She smiled seductively, "And anyway, there's this guy I really like too…"

Charlie rolled his eyes, "Are you trying to seduce me, Ms. Cooper?"

Leah raised an eyebrow, tracing her finger up his chest, "Is it working?"

"A little…"

--------------

Charlie woke up long after Leah had already gone into work, and he rubbed his eyes, sighing. He should probably go back to the Burrow, face his mother and all of her questions. He sat up and groaned, his mother was going to ask him questions that he wouldn't know the answer to; she'd want to discuss things that he hadn't even discussed with Leah, and all while he'd be forced to help with Ginny's wedding. He groaned and grabbing his boxers from the floor, rubbing his eyes, walked down the short hallway to the kitchen.

"HOLY MERLIN, CHARLIE!"

Charlie jumped and went to reach for his wand, realizing he didn't have it and let out a strangled yell, "Bloody hell, Mira! What are you trying to do scare me half to death?"

"I was dropping off one of Leah's DVDs, I didn't know you'd still be here," she paused and laughed, "do you want to put some more clothes on or…?"

Charlie rolled his eyes and opened the cabinets for a bowl and cereal, "No, not particularly. I have to get dressed to go back to the Burrow soon anyway, so unless there was something else you needed…" He turned around and grinned at Mira who rolled her eyes.

"Charlie, I think you know what I would like to discuss with you."

"Yes, I love Leah, and she loves me. And yes, it's rather quick, and yes neither of us usually do this, and yes I'm worried that she'll leave her job for me and be utterly miserable, and no, I haven't figured out a plan yet, I figure I still have a little while, don't I?"

Mira chuckled, "Wow, you basically answered everything." She tucked her hair behind her ear and Charlie looked up briefly, noticing the concern in her storm-grey eyes.

"You really are concerned for her, aren't you?"

Mira sighed, "She's my best friend, Charlie, and she doesn't have any real family, so…" she paused. "Did she tell you who this Reed guy is?"

Charlie waved his hand since he was still chewing, "No, no, I'm not talking to you about this, you can ask her yourself. I'm not getting involved with that."

Mira rolled her eyes and groaned, "Fine, fine, I have to go to St. Mungo's anyway," she stood up and glared at Charlie, "but I swear, Charles Weasley, if you hurt her, and she's too nice to do anything about it, I will personally hex you into oblivion."

Charlie gulped, "Don't worry, Mira, I really do love her."

Mira nodded, "Good," she smiled mischievously, "and good luck with the wedding plans."

---------------

Mira tucked her hair behind her ear and took a deep breath before knocking on Healer Lang's door. "Ah, Healer Dean, please, please come in." He nodded towards a tall man Mira had never seen before, yet who was wearing a Healer coat. "This is Healer Stanton."

Mira became very aware of his indigo-grey eyes and graying-dark brown hair. "Pleasure to meet you, Healer Stanton."

The man smiled, "It's wonderful to meet you, Healer Dean." Realization hit Mira as she shook the terribly attractive man's hand. "Ah, Mira Dean, that name sounds familiar," he snapped his fingers, "weren't you one of Healer Cooper's protégés?"

Mira smiled and raised an eyebrow, "I prefer the term best friend. And how do you Healer Cooper?"

Reed smiled and Mira couldn't but notice how flawless his face was; and that his hair was graying. How old _was_ he? "Ah, of course, I had already left by the time you started your training. I was one of Leah's mentors."

"Healer Stanton was the Head of the Magical Creatures Department and was also in Plants before he left us for more _meaningful_ work in South America," Healer Lang paused, "and I've asked him to sit in on this meeting since he is a _very_ talented Healer, especially in the way of Magical Creatures."

Reed waved his hand, "I think Healer Lang thinks if he flatters me enough I'll come back to St. Mungo's," he laughed good-naturedly and continued. "But, please, Healer Dean, how did you get involved with the Emergency Department?" He flipped through her file, "It looks like from _very_ early on you had an interest in Magical Creatures," he paused, "you were top of you class?"

"At Hogwarts?" She smiled, "Sadly no, that honor went to one Ms. Hermione Granger."

"Ah, yes, of course. Top of -"

"Ravenclaw," she laughed, "yes."

"And I see top of your training class as well - you had a few mentors aside from Healer Cooper, I see," he paused, "now, _why _did you decide to join Emergencies?"

Mira crossed her legs, her face serious. "I was done with training at the height of the war, and I knew that my training and my EMT skills," she smiled at both of their confused looks, "Muggle emergency training. The men and women in ambulances."

"Ah, yes of course."

"So, I knew that Emergencies needed as many Healers as possible, so I joined. And as you can see," she motioned to her file, "I moved up the ranks quickly enough."

"But now that the War is over, you want to follow your true interest."

"Precisely."

Reed nodded, "Well, from what I see here and what I've heard, you would make a wonderful asset to the Department," he grinned, "and your on Healer Cooper's Board as well?"

Healer Lang laughed, "She oversees all the actual research - almost like the Deputy Head."

Mira tried not to blush as Reed grinned again, "Well, Healer Dean, welcome to Magical Creatures, my old stomping ground." He stood up and shook her hand, "I'll be seeing you around - Healer Johnson took a last minute holiday, so I'll be filling in."

Mira grinned, her grey eyes twinkling, "It was a _pleasure_ to meet you," she turned to Healer Lang, "and thank you so much Healer Lang." She paused, "Does Emergencies need me to stay on?"

Healer Lang laughed, "Healer Cooper has been a bigger influence than I would have guessed - only if you want to."

Mira nodded and turned to leave, "Thank you _both_ so much." She smiled and walked out, trying to contain her excitement as she went to Owl George and her father.

----------

Leah was leaning back in her desk chair when Mira walked in soundlessly. She sat down in a chair and said nothing, merely staring at Leah who was reading one of her books. After a few moments of silence, Leah looked up over book, cocking an eyebrow. Mira cocked one back and crossed her legs defiantly. Leah sighed and closed her book. "I take it you're here to scold me about Charlie?"

Mira's face remained disinterested as she examined her fingernails. "Maybe later."

Leah rolled her eyes and leaned forward in her chair, "Than what is it."

"I met Healer Stanton earlier." She looked up to watch Leah's reaction and tried not to smile as she watched her best friend struggle.

"Oh?"

"Yes, do you know him? Rather handsome fellow, but quite _old_."

"_Merlin_, he's not that old!"

"Ah-ha!" Mira pointed an accusatory finger at the older girl. "I knew it!" She turned serious now, "Why have you _never_ mentioned him? Was he mentor and your sex-buddy?"

Leah opened her mouth to respond, but no words came over. "Bloody hell, Leah! He was a _superior_! Did you take advantage of him?"

Leah groaned, "See? This is exactly why I didn't tell anyone - and _no_ he wasn't my sex-buddy! Merlin, Mira! He was my mentor and although he was older and obviously threatened by me, he liked that I didn't have a social life either. And it was only a few months, it really meant nothing."

Mira let out a low whistle. "No wonder Charlie was mad," she frowned at her friend, "I _really_ wish you would have told me."

Leah stood up to give her friend a hug, "I wanted to, but we couldn't risk anyone finding out. My reputation would have been ruined."

"Especially since the other trainees thought you already _were_ shagging someone."

Leah nodded and sat on her desk, "Now, pray tell, how did you meet Reed?"

Mira grinned, "Why, he sat in on my meeting with Healer Lang - well, rather he really was in charge of the meeting." She paused dramatically and tried not to laugh as Leah tried not to yell in frustration. "…And….I'm the newest Magical Creatures Healer!"

"Oh, Mira, that's wonderful!" She gave her best friend a hug, "so when are we going to celebrate?"

Mira laughed, "Well not tonight," her eyes twinkled, "George is taking me out and whenever Dad gets a night off," she rolled her eyes and Leah laughed.

"Detectives never get nights off. So are you going to stay with Emergencies?"

"Until you leave and entrust me with your Board."

"Oh, I see, _now_ we're going to verbally pummel me about Charlie?"

Mira frowned slightly, "No, George told me not to. Didn't want me to upset you and all that," she paused, "but I _do_ want to make sure you know what the hell you're doing."

Leah nodded, "Of course I don't Mira. I love him. He makes me happy. He lives in Romania and loves his job as much as I love mine." She sighed looked up at her friend, her brown eyes sad, "We'll figure something out, won't we?"

Mira nodded, unable to not feel sorry for her friend who deserved only happiness. She deserved a nice guy like Charlie. And she deserved a stable, loving and easy relationship. "I'm sure of it." She squeezed her hand reassuringly. "Now, I must be going - I have a few things to attend to before I go back to my flat," she stood up and walked to the door. "Oh, and is there anything I should know about you and Reed? I mean, since we'll be working together and all…"

Leah's eyes widened in disbelief, "_What_?"

"He's taking over for Johnson while he's on holiday," she grinned, "don't worry, I'll be sure to mention how in _love_ with Charlie you are -" she ducked out of the room before Leah could throw something at her.

-----------

Leah was gathering her things together when Reed knocked on her door, "Thought I'd pop in before you left."

Leah raised an eyebrow as she shrugged off her Healer's coat, "I heard you met Mira today. And I hear you'll be working with her."

Reed grinned, "As soon as I realized it was her I could tell why you two are such great mates," he laughed, "and _yes_, but just for the few weeks I originally planned on staying - Johnson went on an impromptu holiday."

"And you _couldn't_ refuse to come back to work," she teased. She looked up at him curiously, "Do you miss it?"

"What, St. Mungo's?" Leah nodded. "At first, maybe a little. But, I love what I do, where I am. Would I like to come back someday? Sure, maybe. When I'm old."

Leah smiled, "You _are_ old."

Reed was about to retort when Hermione said quietly, "Oh, sorry, didn't mean to interrupt."

Leah grinned, "Oh, no, Hermione, please come in. This is Healer Reed Stanton, and this is Hermione Granger."

Reed grinned and Hermione was caught off-guard by his twinkling indigo-grey eyes. "Ah, the very famous Hermione Granger, honorary Auror and wonderful lawyer."

Hermione smiled, "It's wonderful to meet you, but I'm afraid I'm not familiar with your work…"

Reed laughed, "Ah, not to worry. I was just Leah's old mentor, taught her everything she knows." He slung an arm around her should and laughed as Leah rolled her eyes, "I should be going though, it was wonderful to meet you, Hermione, and Leah, I'll see you soon. And if you see Mira, tell her again that I look forward to working with her."

Leah nodded and smiled, waving goodbye to Reed. She turned to Hermione and tried not to laugh at the girl's facial expression. "Yes, he was my mentor while I was in training, and he left for South America as soon as I got my license, and yes," she laughed again, "he is terribly gorgeous. And yes, he's the one Charlie was jealous of for no reason. He has a girlfriend in South America. And he's here for a few weeks, going to work with Mira."

Hermione nodded, blinking to try and clear her head. "Yes, well, anyway, I came round to see how you were after the whole luncheon ordeal."

Leah smiled as she shoved a book in her bag, "Oh, Mione, thanks. Everything is fine - we're not going to worry about anything quiet yet of course."

Hermione sighed, "Yes, well, Ginny and I did think it was utterly romantic. But yes, I came to make sure you'd be able to come to Ginny's bridal shower on Saturday afternoon."

Leah flipped open her date book, "Yea, I'm free."

"And don't forget Ginny's hen party." Leah nodded, "And the rehearsal dinner," Hermione ticked off, "and we have our last fitting in a few days."

Leah laughed, "Merlin, there's still a lot that needs to get done."

Hermione groaned, "Tell me about it. I doubt we'll be able to sit down and flesh our plans out until after the wedding."

Leah nodded but thought to herself, 'And after your wedding probably too.'

"But it is all so romantic, the two of them wanting to get married so quickly, so perfectly." She sighed, "Well, I need to go and find Ginny so we can go shopping for her rehearsal dinner dress. You have one, right?"

Leah nodded, hating that she had to lie to Hermione. "Yep, already got it." She laughed, "I'll see you soon than, no doubt!" Hermione laughed and they gave each other a hug as Hermione left her office.

Leah was about to leave her office when a nurse came in: one of the goblin patients was having an adverse reaction to one of the treatments. Leah rubbed her forehead, and scribbling a quick note to Charlie, handed it to the nurse to owl while she grabbed her Healer's coat and tugged it on, walking swiftly down the corridor.

---------------

Leah trudged home a few hours later, much later than she had ever anticipated returning to her flat. She opened her flat door and smiled contently. She leaned in her doorway and watched as Charlie stirred something in a pot, whistling to himself. Leah quietly laid her peacoat and bag down on the couch as she walked up behind Charlie and wrapped her arms around his waist, sneaking her head under his arm as he laughed and kissed the top of her head. "Smells delicious."

Charlie grinned, "Why, thank you."

Leah unwrapped herself and poured herself a glass of the wine Charlie was already drinking. "What's the special occasion?"

Charlie turned around, holding a spoon and offering it to her. "Nothing, I needed an excuse to leave the Burrow, and your owl sound awfully depressing. Mum nearly forced me to come over and make you a home-cooked meal."

Leah laughed, "Mmm, that's good. And remind me to tell your Mum thanks." She leaned up and kissed him. She opened the cupboard and got out two plates. "How was your day?"

Charlie groaned, "Awful. More wedding things. And I had to listen to Mum go on and on about how I shouldn't ruin your life."

Leah laughed and leaned against the counter next to the stove, "Oh, poor Charlie," she caressed his bare forearm. "I'm glad your Mum doesn't care if I ruin _your_ life."

"That's what I said!" Charlie laughed and turned the stove off. "And how was your day, love?"

Leah groaned as she plopped herself down at the table as Charlie dished out the pasta Bolognese. "Long and exhausting. Mira came round to pester me, but she _did_ get into Magical Creatures Department."

Charlie raised an eyebrow, "Oh?"

Leah smiled ruefully, "Are you trying to insinuate that I had something to do with that?"

Charlie shrugged, "Well, it _does_ seem like you have a lot of influence over there," he hid a smile by shoving his fork in his mouth.

Leah tried not to blush, "Well, I'm sure it helped that I was her mentor and friend, and that Healers Lang and Stanton met with her and ultimately gave her the position," she paused to calculate Charlie's reaction, and was relieved to see no change in his demeanor. "But she really is a wonderfully talented Healer and any Department would be pleased to have her."

Charlie nodded, "Oh, she came round and dropped a DVD off this morning."

Leah cocked an eyebrow, "That's weird," she paused, "probably wanted to go off on me outside of St. Mungo's."

Charlie nodded, "I think she meant to threaten me, but she didn't."

Leah rubbed his leg, "Tell me more about your day."

Charlie shook his head, "No, no, I don't want to relieve the torture I had to put up with. I want to hear about your emergency goblin patient."

Leah swallowed her food and was about to respond when there was a tapping at the window. "Well, that's weird. It's rather late for an owl."

Charlie nodded and went to the window. The owl however flew off as soon as Charlie detached the letter from its leg. Charlie opened the letter and didn't say anything for a moment; his forehead wrinkled slightly and he frowned. Leah stood up when he didn't respond to her. She rubbed his arm, "Charlie, what is it?"

Charlie shook his head, "Uh, nothing important. Just a letter from Smitty, one of the guys from the Reserve sending me some updates."

Leah knew he wasn't giving her the full details and knew that something Smitty had written to him bothered him. "Charlie," she put her arm around his waist, rubbing his side. "You can tell me."

Charlie looked at her, his normally bright blue eyes seemed sad and disappointed. "Uh, just that the Chief isn't going to retire after all. He's signed on for another four years." He tried to smile and put the letter on the counter, kissing Leah on the top of her head and walked back to the table.

Leah frowned and followed him, not knowing what to say. She took a few bites of her food before she said quietly, "I'm sorry, Charlie."

Charlie shrugged, not meeting her eyes. "It's not your fault. There's not much anyone could do. Jeff didn't want to retire, so he didn't. Simple as that."

Leah shook her head, "No, it's not fair really. You deserve that job, probably more than any of the other Keepers -"

"Now that's not true."

Leah put her hand on his arm, "No, it is. The twins used to tell me all the time about their favorite brother who was a phenomenal Keeper, the most popular, the most talented. That the Reserve was lucky to have him, that the whole of Europe wanted him to go around and teach courses on how to properly tame and handle dragons, " she paused, "you _deserve_ to be Chief, Charlie."

Charlie looked up at her, his eyes still sad, but he tried to smile, "Thank you, Leah" he leaned over and kissed her briefly, "that really means a lot."

Leah smiled slightly back and finished the rest of her plat quickly. She took a sip of wine and cocked an eyebrow. "That dinner was really good. I didn't know you could cook so well."

Charlie smiled, taking another bite, "I'm an okay cook, I guess." Leah shook her head and smiled, placing her chin on her hand and discreetly rubbing her barefoot against his pants leg. Charlie cocked an eyebrow as he took a sip of his wine. "We going to bother with the dishes?"

Leah shook her head, "Not," she leaned over as if she was going to kiss him, but pulled away at the last second and grinning stood up and opened the freezer. Charlie groaned. "What are you doing?"

Leah turned around as she pulled out a bowl from the cupboard and attempted to look innocent. "What do you mean? I just want some ice cream, you want any?"

Charlie laughed and took another sip of wine as Leah sat on the counter with her bowl and spoon. Charlie stood and leaned against the counter, standing in between her open legs, his hands rubbing her thighs. "Can I have a bite?" Leah cocked an eyebrow and went to stick the spoon in his mouth but quickly brought it to her own.

"Sorry, I just like cookie dough too much." She laughed when Charlie poked her side, threatening to tickle her. "Fine, fine! Here," she fed him a spoonful and smiled. "That better?"

Charlie shook his head and leaned his elbows on her thighs as he rubbed his hands up and down her sides. Leah's eyes locked with his and she put her bowl down slowly, their eyes still on each other. Charlie leaned forward and kissed her slowly as her hands went around his shoulders. She wrapped her legs around his waist when he brought his lips down to her neck, making her moan softly. Her hands moved down his back, wishing his shirt was off so she could feel his bare chest and back. He moved his face back in front of hers and she opened her eyes slowly. "I love you," he whispered, kissing her cheek. "You're wonderful, you know that?" He chuckled softly, "I don't know how I deserve such a wonderful, intelligent, attractive witch."

Leah kissed his jaw, "I think you got it wrong, Charlie love. How was I able to snag such a caring, talented, strong man?" She played with the hem of his shirt. "I love you," she moaned as he attacked her neck again, his hands gripping her waist. She moved her fingers lightly over his chest, underneath his shirt, causing him to shiver slightly. "And I don't want you to be upset about the Reserve." He stopped kissing her neck and looked her in the eye. "You'll figure everything out, Charlie, I know you will." She smiled, cupping his cheek, "We're going to be fine."

Charlie nodded and smiled, "I know we will." He grinned and lifted her off the counter, lifting her over his shoulder as she laughed, smacking his back lightly, trying to get him to put her down. Charlie laughed and carried her to her room, placing her lightly on the bed. She smiled as she sat up, pulling Charlie's shirt over his head. He moved on to the bed and kissed her deeply but slowly, moving his hands to unbutton her jeans. He moved down her legs as he pulled them off and kissed both of her legs as he moved back up her body. She ran her hands over his back, smiling seductively. She sat up slightly and unbuttoned her own shirt slowly. Charlie watched, mesmerized by her tantalizingly slow near-strip tease. She let her oxford fall slowly off her shoulders and Charlie cocked an eyebrow at her bright blue, lacy bra. He let out a low growl. "You little minx…" He kissed her more fiercely this time, moving his hands to cup her breasts, she moaned into his mouth and laid back on the bed.

He was kissing her collarbone now, pushing her bra straps down her shoulders as Leah let out another moan. "I love you, Charlie." He sucked hard on the soft skin of her collarbone, making her moan louder this time. He laughed into her shoulder, kissing her again. He moved his one hand down to the waistband of her knickers. But Leah took this moment to her advantage and hooking her leg around his, deftly and aptly flipped them over: she crawled out from underneath him and straddled him. She shrugged a shoulder and moved her hands to unbutton his own jeans, pulling them and his boxer-briefs down slowly. She cocked an eyebrow and licked her lips as she moved her way up his legs, pausing over his already hard member, letting out a breath and smiling as Charlie groaned softly. She looked up at him, "Did you like that?" She asked softly, swirling her tongue quickly over the tip, causing Charlie to groan louder.

"Merlin, Leah," he sat up and grabbed her waist, pulling her up so he could slip off her panties with one hand, and moving her hot, already wet center towards his throbbing member. Her hair was a mess around her face, covering her left eye. She was breathing deeply, nearly panting, which only made Charlie want her more. Her pink lips were swollen from their kisses, her brown eyes dark. "I wanted to take things slow, Leah, but, Merlin, I love you so bloody much, and you're so bloody-" he didn't finish because Leah had lowered herself on to him, causing him to groan loudly, as she moaned, running a hand through her hair.

He sat up to kiss her, but she moved in a small circle, making her moan loudly and dig her nails into his sides. He, in turn, pushed his head further into the pillow, watching her move in a small circle again. It did little for him, but she moaned louder and he thrust up into her, wanting her so much, loving her so much. She threw her head back as he thrust again, deeper than he had ever seemingly gone and Leah's breath hitched as she moved in a circle again. She looked down at Charlie, meeting his eyes: he was so caught off guard, he didn't thrust again, and instead Leah lifted herself slightly, only to lower herself again. "Merlin, Leah," Charlie groaned as he lifted his hands to her breasts. The added touch made her moan and she lifted and lowered herself more quickly this time, and soon, she was riding him faster and faster, and he couldn't help but thrust deeper and deeper into her when she wanted to lift herself up again. She leaned her head back again, screaming his name as an orgasm hit her, but Charlie kept thrusting, and soon Leah was having another orgasm. But this time Charlie came too, both of them screaming each other's names.

Leah collapsed on top of him, and kissed his chest. "Did I tell you I love you?"

Charlie grinned and kissed her hair, "Once or twice."

--------------

A/N: Reviews?


	13. XIII

A/N: Thanks to all those who have reviewed (which is very, very few). Please, if you read this, please review! They mean a lot to me! I mean, I'm still going to write this because I enjoy the characters but…please?

-----------------

Mrs. Weasley stood quietly in the doorway and smiled at her son and his new girlfriend. She tried not to sigh so as not to disturb them. Charlie was reading _Dragon's Quarterly_ magazine and Leah was reading a very old and decrepit book – Mrs. Weasley could only make out the word 'vampire'. She was sitting against the arm of the couch, her legs draped over his lap. Mrs. Weasley couldn't help but smile as Charlie absentmindedly drew circles on the tops of her feet where skin was exposed. Mrs. Weasley smiled again, even though they were reading together rather innocently, she still felt as though she were intruding.

Charlie closed his magazine and yawned, stretching his arms above her head. He couldn't help but shake his head when he looked over at Leah who was still reading, not even noticing that her legs had shifted slightly when Charlie yawned. He brought his hands back down to the tops of her feet – he didn't quite understand _why_ she was wearing short socks in the winter, but he didn't ask. He noticed a rather long scar – he could only see part of it since it looked like it ran all the way to her toes. Intrigued, he lifted her jeans up a little. His eyes darted to her face, but she was still too involved in her reading. He noticed a few more scars around and above her ankles. He ran the pad of his finger down one, trying to grab her attention, to not avail. "Where have you gone hiking?"

"Hm?" She still hadn't looked up or even made any facial movement.

"Didn't you say you'd been hiking?"

No response.

"Did you get into gang fights with munchkins?"

He was surprised when he heard, "Hm-hm." She should have been proud of his Wizard of Oz reference – a movie he watched one afternoon when she had fallen asleep during a visit to her flat. Smiling ruefully, he put his hand on the top of her book and pushed it down, laughing as her eyes to continued to follow the words.

She looked up and pouted, "I was reading!"

"And _I_ was having a one-sided conversation. Now, where have you gone hiking?"

She looked confused and knowing that she wanted nothing more than to turn back to her book, he took it from her hand and closed it, holding it above and behind his head. "Charlie!" She pouted again, "How did you know I'd been hiking?"

"You mentioned that was one of the ways you've gotten scars," he nodded towards her foot, "and how else would you get scars on your ankles?"

She laughed softly, "Danny took me to a park near London and we wandered into the woods because I like nature – but since there were no paths and I was clumsy in my younger days, a lot of branches and thorns scratched my legs up."

"That was the only time you'd been hiking?"

"I was a city girl, leaving on the streets," she laughed, "I didn't really get to the country much. Once I was of age, I Apparated to the countryside a few times briefly, just to see it."

Charlie nodded, "Well, let's go hiking." He made to stand up and Leah laughed.

"Charlie! Where?"

"Well, right out back! It's not much, but you're a beginner, we should start easy. You can borrow Ginny's old trainers."

Leah laughed again, "You're serious?"

"Very," he grinned and pushed her legs off his lap playfully.

"Charlie! It's getting dark!"

Charlie, however, ignored her and made his way into the kitchen, "Mum, Ginny has some old trainers in her room, right?"

Mrs. Weasley looked very confused but told her son that she thought so and watched as Charlie summoned them without a wand, turning towards Leah. "You have a hat and gloves, I suppose?"

"And scarf, yea," she took the old trainers from his outstretched hands, slipping them on. "I'm assuming these woods are relatively safe?"

Mrs. Weasley smiled warmly, "They are," she turned to Charlie, "be back for supper?"

Charlie tugged on his thick brown jacket and Mrs. Weasley tried not to frown at the apparent wornness of it: the frayed bottom, the worn elbows, the worn and torn up collar. "She's only a beginner, Mum, she won't last long."

"Oi." Leah said indignantly as she tugged on her old red-plaid jacket and pulled her black beanie on furiously. Charlie ignored her however and headed towards the black door. Leah turned to Mrs. Weasley who shrugged, "He's just teasing you. There's no one who likes the outdoors more than Charlie."

Leah's face softened, "Thanks, Mrs. Weasley." She ran out the door after Charlie and Mrs. Weasley watched through her kitchen window as Leah leapt onto his back, both of them laughing.

She smiled to herself, laughing. They were like two teenagers. She flicked her dish towel, drying the dishes by hand to keep her busy, but her mind wandered and she couldn't help but worry about her son and the girl who was already like her daughter. She was afraid of losing both to Romania, but was even more afraid of keeping one heartbroken and miserable in England.

They were walking close together, but not yet holding hands. Charlie looked at Leah from the corner of his eyes and tried not to smile. "At least you haven't fallen yet."

Leah humphed and pulled another burr off her coat sleeve, "It's not like I ever had the opportunity as a child, considering I lived in the middle of London, far away from any nature."

Charlie tried not to laugh, but Leah continued, "And anyway I'd like to see you survive in my neighborhood without magic."

"Is wearing that coat a kind of Muggle defense-mechanism?" Leah punched the side of his arm. "Ow!"

"Serves you right. You don't even _know_ what kind of damage I could inflict on you."

Charlie winced, remembering the creep at the club only a few weeks earlier. "Fine, fine. You'd have a tough time in _real_ nature and I'd have a tough time on the streets," he pointed out a rock before she slipped on it. "But seriously, about that jacket –"

Leah tried not to blush and pulled her hat down slightly, causing her hair to flip out around her ears. "What can I say? Once a punk, always a punk."

-----------

Mira and George came to the Burrow for dinner that night. They were supposed to have dinner with her father that night, but he had to cancel at the last minute to work. Dinner was a quiet a simple affair, most of the talk focused on Mira and her job promotion. Much to Leah's relief, Mira made no mention of Reed.

Leah and Mira offered to help clean, but Mrs. Weasley told them she was fine – Mr. Weasley explained that she was doing the household chores by herself to calm her nerves. The wedding was completely planned and all she could do was wait. He explained the next few days would be extremely hard for her until all of the supplies and relatives started to come in.

Charlie left the Burrow without either of his parents noticing. He took his coat off when they Apparated into her flat and started to say something when he noticed Leah frowning. "What?" He looked in the direction she was looking and noticed a black box blinking red, something he had never noticed before.

"It's my Muggle answering machine," she went to push a button, "but I never have a message." She hesitated, "This can't be good."

Charlie moved to rub her back comfortably but was startled when he heard a man's deep voice. He opened his mouth to demand where the voice was coming from but he saw Leah's pained face and saw her eyes were on the Muggle message box. "And I know it's him, but we need an outside confirmation and since you're his only relative and the only one who will come down here unwillingly – Lee I know you're not going to let me know you're upset, but I'll be here until 11 and I'll help you sell his flat and set up the funeral. And I won't mention anything to Mira." The voice stopped and Leah pressed a button making a female voice say, "Message deleted."

She turned to Charlie frowning, "I missed the beginning – who was that? What happened? Why did the voice mention Mira?"

Leah walked into her kitchen, "That was Mira's dad, he's a Detective at the police station and he helped me a lot when I was younger – he worked in my district – but he called to tell me they found my uncle dead." She heaved a sigh. "And so I have to go down there how to confirm it's him and than I'll have to sell his flat and all his belongings and organize a funeral or maybe just a burial." She opened her fridge and grabbed a beer, turning around again, "Oh, sorry, forgot you were here – you can go home if you'd like."

Charlie moved closer to her and rubbed her arms, "I'll go with you," he lifted her chin up when she frowned, "I know you're not going to admit you're upset, but come on, Leah, you _don't_ have to do this alone."

Leah attempted a rueful smile, "But you don't know the first thing about selling a Muggle's flat."

Charlie rolled his eyes, "You want to go to the station now?"

Leah nodded towards her beer, "Lemme finish?" She downed the beer quickly and groaned, "Thankfully I had off tomorrow."

Charlie rolled his eyes as Leah went to grab their coats, "I guess you'll be okay wearing regular clothes," she sighed and looked at his attire quickly, "maybe I can transfigure some stuff tomorrow…"

Charlie shook his head and pushed her out the door, "Come on, Leah, let's go."

----------

Leah had insisted on taking the underground to prolong the journey – she had no desire to see her uncle or alive or dead, but wouldn't let herself feel guilty over such admissions. Charlie didn't protest, knowing that she wasn't going to ask for anything else and feeling bad that he didn't know how to help. His hand found hers when they stepped off and Leah looked up at him briefly and tried to smile. His heart nearly broke.

Leah led the way into the station, stopping at a front desk where an older man was sitting. "Now, if I didn't know any better, I'd swear you looked _just_ like this little troublemaker –"

Leah grinned, leaning against the counter, "Hullo, Bob. It's been a while."

"I'll say. You were but a little babe when they assigned me to these damn offices. Lou said you were still out making trouble, beating up those hooligans –"

"Now, Bob, you know they deserved it."

Bob turned to Charlie, "Don't mess with this one – when she's done with you, you'll be begging us to lock you up."

"Bob, you know I don't date lawbreakers. Now, I'd love to stay and chat, but we're here to see Tom."

"Yes, yes, he's in his office. But will you promise to come visit me again?"

"Of course, Bob. It was lovely to see you."

"Not as lovely as it was seeing you, Fox."

Leah walked away from the desk and led Charlie through a large double door before he could ask her about the nickname. "The officers called me Fox because I was clever, well, compared to the idiots in my neighborhood, and because I fought them a lot too – and always won."

Charlie was about to say something when Leah knocked on a closed door. She opened the door as a man whom Charlie could recognize easily as Mira's father stood up to giver her a hug. "How you holding up?"

Leah waved her hand, "I'm fine, just aggravated that I have to do all this stuff for him – and no, you are _too_ busy to help me!"

Tom nodded, "Fine, fine, fine," he turned towards Charlie. "And I'm assuming you're a Weasley," he paused for a moment, "and since the only two I haven't met are Bill and Charlie, and Bill's married," he stuck out his hand, "Thomas Dean. Wonderful to meet you, Charlie Weasley. How are you?"

Charlie grinned, "Fine, thanks, Mr. Dean."

Tom turned serious, "I hope you're taking good care of my surrogate daughter. I doubt I have to tell you that she _will_ kick your arse."

"Tom! Come on – he already got all of this from his brothers –"

"And Mira," Charlie grinned, "don't worry, Mr. Dean. I think I'm more afraid of Leah here than I am my dragons."

Tom nodded, "Right, right you're the dragon tamer."

Leah rolled her eyes, "Let's get this over with Tom, Charlie and I have to wake up early to run over to his flat."

Tom froze, "You're taking him to your uncle's?"

Leah nodded, "He'll be fine. He'll be with me, remember?"

Tom gave Leah a look that made Charlie slightly nervous, but Tom quickly led them out of his office before Charlie could demand to know what was going on.

---------------

Charlie's hand found hers as they stood over the table; Leah nodded as she looked at the grey face of her uncle. "Did they do an autopsy?"

Tom covered the body again, but Leah continued to stare, her face set in a grim frown. "Only if you sign off on one, Lee."

Leah tore her eyes away to look at Tom, "You sure they don't need a cadaver for the coroner's to practice on?"

Tom frowned, "Leah –"

She laughed and Charlie nearly winced at how fake and pained it sounded. He rubbed his thumb over the top of her hand. "Well, no one's going to go to a service anyway-"

Tom tried to hide his worry for the girl – young woman – he considered to be his second daughter. "If you want to donate –" he struggled for the right word.

Leah still trying to make light of the situation said, "Where do I sign?"

Charlie did not let go of her hand as they walked back to Tom's office. "And you'll let me know when they figure out what he overdosed on?"

Tom nodded and said seriously, "Leah, call me if you need anything, okay?"

Leah smiled and nodded, "I'll be fine, Tom," she turned around as she followed Charlie out, "but you can help me by taking Mira and George out to celebrate her promotion."

Tom tried not to roll his eyes but he looked at Charlie and mouthed, "Take care of her!"

Charlie nodded, knowing he would.

---------

Neither said much on their way back to Leah's flat. "Your mum won't mind if you stay?" She had asked almost timidly as they walked through the front door of her building.

He rubbed her back as she unlocked her door, "Has she seemed to mind the past week?"

She laughed softly and took off her coat, "We should wake up early." Charlie nodded and wrapped his arms around her waist slowly, not really paying attention to what she was saying, but staring into her eyes. "You'll have to do exactly as I say tomorrow," he nodded again, inching his face closer and closer to hers, causing her to speak breathily. "It's going to be risky, Charlie, and I don't want you to lose any limbs."

Charlie's lips curved upwards as his nose touched hers lightly, "I trust you to protect me, Ms. Cooper," he left a ghost of a kiss on her lips, "Shall we go to sleep?" He looked into her eyes again, noticing the sadness that was still there, "Want to sleep everything off?"

Leah hugged him tighter, "Thanks, Charlie."

-----------

"Charlie!" He groaned and rolled over, feeling for Leah. He could hear her laughing from somewhere else in the room as his hand continued to feel for her. "Come on, get up, we need to eat quick and leave. I already transfigured your clothes."

"The sun is barely up!"

Leah laughed again and he could feel the bed dip slightly from her weight as she ran her hands ups his bare back, "It's nearly 9! Now come on, or I'll make you fend for yourself!"

Charlie rubbed his eyes, "You'd let me fend for myself! Against Muggles! In an unknown territory?"

Leah kissed his cheek quickly, "Muggles with pocket knives," she got up and smacked his arse, "Up and at 'em, Weasley!"

He opened his eye slightly to see her tying her shoes. "Merlin, put those away! They're blinding me!"

He drew away slightly when he saw her menacing glare. "Mock my shoes, and you'll regret it, Weasley. No one mocks my shoes and gets away with it."

"I was just making note of how _bright_ they were, love! I adore your shoes! Nothing wrong with them, not at all! Now," he leapt from bed, "where are my clothes that you so wonderfully transfigured for me?"

A few minutes later they were riding on the underground, when Charlie leaned over to whisper in her ear, "Seems I'm not the only one here who likes your attire." Her only response was a cocked eyebrow and the slight nudge of her hip. He, like nearly everyone on the car couldn't keep his eyes off of her. She was wearing skin-tight black jeans that made Charlie wonder how she could even walk, a faded purple 'Run DMC' t-shirt (which she had explained was some sort of American Muggle musical group. He still wasn't quite sure since he found just nodding and pretending to understand was easier than actually trying to understand), and her bright neon green Converse "high tops" (what she had referred to them as). He hair was pulled into a tight, high ponytail with her bangs whipped up into one of the highest and most intimidating poofs he had ever seen. Her brown eyes popped with her heavy black eyeliner and Charlie realized how utterly intimidating she looked: terribly sexy and terribly frightening. A terrifying combination.

Charlie was slightly nervous when they got off the tube, but he just repeated what Leah had told him over in his head; "Stay close to her, act confident, try not to talk to anyone." She winked at him as they walked out to the street. He followed her down a completely commonplace street and felt at ease. Everyone had made her neighborhood to be so bad, but it seemed perfectly normal!

But then she turned a corner and his jaw almost dropped. He followed Leah past the dozens of overflowing garbage cans, the people sitting on the curb, the man cleaning his knife on a stoop. He tried not to openly stare and instead focused on following Leah. So far it seemed as though no one had noticed them.

"Oi!" The hairs on Charlie's neck pricked, but he and Leah kept walking. "Oi! Oi! Ya wank'r where ya think yer goin'?"

Before Charlie knew what was going on, Leah turned around rapidly, her hands in fists on her side and nearly growling in a low voice, "There a problem?"

The man falter slightly, "What you doin' here, pretty lady?" He went to touch her arm, but she had grabbed his wrist and twisted it. The man let out a strangled yell, the fag falling from his lips. "You undercover or somethin'?"

Leah let out a harsh laugh, "I live here." She dropped the man's arm and continued to walk down the street, Charlie at her side.

They passed a few more houses and a few more people sitting on stoops, asking for drugs, getting into fights. Charlie tried not to notice these things, but he couldn't help it. Leah had _lived_ here?"

She stopped outside a grimy stoop where a group of guys were sitting and smoking. Charlie noticed the number of the house was nearly falling off, as was the Muggle post box. There was a half broken flower pot on the adjacent stoop that looked as though it was at least 70 years old. "Ah, lil lady, what can we do fer ya?"

"Oi, ya want a lil somethin'?"

Another boy laughed and passed what Charlie could only assume _wasn't_ a typical fag. "Maybe she wants a lil lovin' and a lil smoke."

"Want us to git rid of your boy here?"

"Git you sloshed and riddy tah-"

Leah laughed for a moment, but in a second her face was inches from the boys, serious and fierce, her eyes blazing. She leaned on her knee that she had put on a step. "Get _off_ ma stoop."

Charlie noticed the slight change in the way she talked, but was so distracted by her actions, how she was handling herself, that he filed it away for the moment.

"_Yer_ stoop?"

"Ol' man Smith lived here."

"Oi, we'd 'member ya suga-"

One of the men stood up, but Leah pushed him hard, in between the shoulder and collarbone, forcing him to stumbled back to his seat. "Get _off_ ma stoop."

One of the men opened his mouth, "Bloody 'ell, it's Lil Coops."

Another man stood, throwing his fag on the ground, "Apologies, Lil Coops-" and ran off.

Leah cocked an eyebrow at the others menacingly "What about ya nancy boys? Get off ma stoop."

"Who you calling –" but another boy nudged him.

"Don' ya know Lil Coops?"

"I'm not 'fraid a some broad."

Leah leaned towards him, "I'd listen to yer friend here, yea? Unless you wanna end up like Stevens."

The man's eyes grew, "You're the one-"

Leah took the guys fag out of his mouth, "Get off ma property."

The remaining men nearly ran off the stoop, muttering and eyeing Leah. But Leah and Charlie walked up the steps and Leah heaved a sigh as she opened the door. Charlie looked around the practically bare flat. "At least it will be quick to clean."

Leah turned around and punched Charlie's arm lightly. "Were you scared?"

Charlie smiled, "What happened to Stevens?"

Leah grinned mischievously, "Don't you worry about that. Come on, let's go see what we're working with." She led him through the cramped kitchen, "All original," she motioned towards the Muggle appliances, "I doubt they've been used in years." She stopped in front of two doors right off the kitchen. She took a deep breath and opened the door to the right to reveal a small room with only a ratty mattress and few tattered clothes spread about the floor. "His room," she said quietly and waved her wand to shrink everything. "Easier to throw out," she shrugged.

Charlie gripped her shoulder to comfort her as they crossed the narrow hall. She attempted to turn the knob. "That wanker."

"What?"

"That bloody arse locked my fucking door – look he put bloody glue in the cracks –"

"Why would he do that?"

"That –" she whipped out her wand and angrily waved it at the door causing to nearly fall off the hinges with a loud groan. She waved her wand again and placed the door back on its hinges Leah entered the room, still fuming and nodded curtly when she saw her room was _entirely_ empty.

"Come on, let's go throw these things out so we can find someone to buy this bloody hell hole."

"Leah, are you all right?"

"Of course I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be fine?" She had conjured up some garbage bags and opened the front door to throw the bags to the trash outside when she saw another man on her stoop. "Oi! Are you lot dumb or just arseholed? Get off ma bloody stoop!"

A _very_ large man stood up and even Charlie was intimidated Leah, however, was not. "They told me you were back, Lil Coops, but I didn't believe them."

"Julio," she nodded coldly, "unless you plan on buying this flat, get off ma stoop."

He took a long drag of his fag. "What happened to your old man?"

Her jaw tightened; she tried to stay clam as she said through gritted teeth, "He _wasn't_ ma ol' man."

Julio let out a low, rumbling, patronizing laugh, "Right, Lil Coops, cause you got out, you couldn't be related to him." Charlie could almost see the smoke from her ears and tried to intervene. "Who's the new guy?"

Leah ignored this last comment, "Julio, get off ma stoop."

He put out his fag, "Calm down, Lil Coops, I'm not doin' nothing, just mindin' ma own business." He chuckled again, "Look atcha," he slowly looked her up and down and even Charlie felt violated, "ya haven't changed one bit."

"Julio. Leave."

He cocked a challenging eyebrow, "Maybe I want to buy yer ol' man's flat."

One second Leah was smiling sweetly, and the next she was twisting Julio's arm around his back, pushing up against the side of the stoop, her knee digging into his back. She leaned down to whisper something Charlie couldn't hear in his ear and he watched as Julio responded. Leah stomped on his left ankle, causing him to let out a strangled yell. Leah let go of his arm, but not before she dug her knee into his back again.

Without a glance back, Julio stumbled down the stoop. Leah sighed deeply and turned to Charlie, "Sorry you had to see that."

He took her hand and pulled her back into the flat, closing the door before he could even respond. "You okay?" he asked as he ran his thumb over her cheek, "that could not have been fun for you."

She leaned into his hand as he held her face lightly, "No, it wasn't. But it's fine, we should go. I'm sure no one's going to want to buy this flat for a while."

But as Leah opened the door, there was a young, shy looking woman standing there, poised to knock. "Um, Ms. Cooper?"

Leah smiled warmly, "Laura? Is that you?" She beckoned the younger woman inside, asking her questions about her obviously pregnant belly, the baby's father, and a few other things Charlie barely paid attention to before the selling of the flat came up. After a few more minutes of arguing, Laura agreed to take the flat for a relatively cheap fee, and signed the contract before she read it.

"So how much do I owe you?"

Leah smiled, "Next time, read before you sign. Twenty quid."

As Charlie and Leah were walking out of her neighborhood, he turned to her, "That was probably the nicest thing anyone has ever done with that girl."

She shrugged, "She and her boyfriend have never done drugs, and I figure _something_ good should come from that house," she smiled reluctantly as she kissed Charlie fleetingly, "and I'd probably make very little money off the flat anyway."

Charlie laughed and kissed her head, "Thanks for protecting me today, Lil Coops."

She groaned and put her head in her hands, "No, don't call me that too!"

Charlie laughed and tugged her onto the car when he heard the invisible lady yell, "Mind the gap." "Fine, fine, I won't. But you did good today, kid."

Leah smiled and intertwined their fingers, "I thought so," she hesitated and rubbed her thumb over his hand, "Thanks for coming with me, love."

He kissed her cheek, "Love you too." He looked at her seriously, "Can we never go back there though, please?"

Leah laughed triumphantly. "I knew it!"

---------------


	14. XIV

A/N: So I already have like tons written in a notebook, so I'll be updating rather quickly for a while (well, depending on how quickly I can type and how much downtime I'll get…) but there really isn't much conflict left – which is fine by me since this isn't a true novel or story or anything I suppose. But I'm going to continue to write because I like these characters and I enjoy writing them. So, please review if you read this story – it would mean so much!!

Enjoy!

-------------

Charlie barely got to see Leah the few days leading up to the wedding. He helped set up the reception area, the pews, and the tents. And Leah was working extra hours at St. Mungo's to get ready for her presentations at the banquet. The day before the wedding Charlie brought Leah some leftover Sheppard's pie that his mother had made, knowing she'd be working late. The receptionist smiled and nodded, letting him walk down to her office unaccompanied and without warning Leah of his arrival. Leah, however, was not in her office, so Charlie shrugged off his coat and leaned back in her swivel chair, something that was still foreign to him.

He was turning back and forth slightly when he noticed a half-hidden paper. His interest piqued, he examined the paper, careful to not move it too much. The words "Plants Head" however caught his eyes before he pulled the paper out of the stack to read it better. He frowned; why hadn't Leah told him they wanted to promote her in the Plants department? Was she going to refuse the promotion to be with him? He was stirred from his thoughts when Leah walked in. "Hey," she smiled and kissed him in greeting, tugging on his shirt slightly, "you brought me dinner?" Her eyes twinkled when she noticed the bag on the desk.

Charlie nodded, still frowning as Leah took a bite, "What?"

"Were you going to tell me they were offering you Head of Plants?"

Leah's eyes widened, her smile faltering, "Charlie, they asked me right after you got that letter from your friend at the Reserve, sure I'm going to accept it."

"Why wouldn't you?"

"I want to see how the Directors and Chair-people respond to my Board because maybe they'll grant me more money for research, or a sabbatical and they said they'd let me take it later on if I don't want it now."

Charlie was still frowning, "I don't want you to not take it for me."

"Charlie, I have enough jobs on my plate and if I accept it, I'd have to leave Bugs."

"Leah, it sounds like they'd let you stay at Bugs if you really wanted to."

Leah took another bite of her food, "Charlie, I don't want to discuss this with you now, okay, I haven't made up my mind yet, so let it go."

Charlie could tell she was getting irritated but he pressed on, "Leah, you're an extremely talented Healer and I don't want to be the reason why you leave or why you decide to not take –"

"Charlie," Leah said in a low and quiet voice, "-not now."

"I'm just saying –"

Leah stood up, "I have to eat quickly and than I have a few more hours of things to get accomplished before the wedding, so maybe you should leave."

Charlie knew a dismissal when he heard one. Grabbing his coat he turned to her, "I love you too much to let you put your career on hold," he hesitated, "I'll see you at the wedding."

Charlie stopped at the receptionist's desk and asked if he could leave a note for Leah since she wasn't in. He jolted down a quick note and sighing, returned to the Burrow.

Leah woke up late the next morning. She had gotten back late from St. Mungo's late and since the wedding wasn't until 5 that afternoon, she didn't need to get up early. But at 11 am, as Leah was drinking her morning tea, Mira Apparated into her flat. "Come on, let's go to the Burrow. We have to be there in like 10 minutes."

Leah looked up and saw Mira was already showered and her hair done. "We have to be there now?"

Mira rolled her eyes, "In case you forgot, we're bridesmaids. We have to help the bride get ready – we have duties, Coop!"

Leah frowned at the nickname, "I hate when you call me that."

Mira smiled mischievously, "Why do you think I use it?"

Leah rolled her eyes, "Fine, lemme shower-" But Mira had noticed that she wasn't as excited as she should be for one of their friends to be getting married.

"All right, what's wrong?"

Leah sat her mug back down, "Nothing. Just a little tiff with Charlie over work is all." She got up to put her dishes in her sink and knew Mira was watching her every move. She sighed, "He was just worried I was going to make decisions based around him."

"And are you?"

"No! My decisions will be based around what I want, yea? He shouldn't have to worry and get so demanding."

Mira shrugged, "Obviously, I don't know the whole story, so I'm just going to tell you what I think. Suck it up. We're bridesmaids. It's Ginny's big day. Not yours. So when you get to the Burrow, be happy. Okay, let's go. Hurry up and shower. I'm going to wait here. I'm not going over there alone.

Leah rolled her eyes and walked into her bathroom as Mira put on the telly.

------------

Leah winked at Neville as she walked up the aisle; they were the only two in the wedding party who wasn't dating, so they vowed to try and make each other laugh at the most inopportune times. Leah knew that apparently Neville had once been a shy and timid young man, but she couldn't see it. He was, she didn't know how to describe it, but jolly. He had lost all of his baby fat and was pretty hilarious. And he was _very_ attached to his work. His plants were his life. He had provided all of the flowers for the wedding – free of charge of course. Leah sniffed the flowers she was holding as she continued up the aisle, keeping her eyes on Neville who was making discreet faces. She couldn't help but grin.

Charlie couldn't keep his eyes off of her as she walked up the aisle. He saw her wink and smile and he looked up to see Neville acting very – not like the Neville he had once known. He couldn't help but smile slightly – maybe Neville had changed, or maybe he was only like this with Leah. Someone who made him comfortable and at ease. And he knew they were apparently in a small fight – he hadn't been able to find her alone all day to apologize and explain himself, but he knew – he hoped – they'd be okay. He covered his mouth when there was a collective gasp when the entire audience saw the back of Leah's dress. He had to admit, the back _was_ very revealing.

When Leah got to her position, Mira pinched her discreetly and motioned to Hermione, who was already tearing up. Hermione was staring at Harry and Fred and crying. Fred was grinning – she gave him two weeks tops before he proposed. Ron was staring intensely at Ron who was looking dreamily at him; Leah knew their children would have the bluest eyes ever. George winked at Mira who winked dramatically back, making him bite back a grin. They'd be next.

Leah caught Charlie's eyes briefly before the music started, but she could only give him a small smile before everyone's attention was on Ginny. As soon as she started walking down the aisle, Arthur on her arm, Mrs. Weasley lost it. But Ginny wasn't crying, just like Leah knew she wouldn't – Ron owed her 5 knuts. Ginny was grinning, staring at Harry who had his own goofy grin. She really did look beautiful, but Leah barely noticed this. She and Harry looked happy – truly happy.

Leah looked briefly at all of her friends – Hermione and Fred, who only had eyes for her even as she watched two of her best friends getting married through teary eyes; Mira and George (who Leah noticed played the Staring Game throughout the entire ceremony) and Ron and Luna who continued to stare at each other lovingly (although a little too intensely and dreamy for Leah's liking). Even Neville was smiling out at the crowd and Leah followed his gaze to his girlfriend Jenna. Leah sighed, hoping that one day she'd be as happy as her friends.

She turned briefly towards the pews and found Charlie watching her; she could see the love, admiration and respect in his eyes. He nodded slightly, his lips curving into a slight smile. And as Charlie tried not to laugh at her wink, she knew they'd be fine.

--------------

No one could fully grasp just how many people were at the wedding until the reception. The entire Puddlemere and England Quidditch teams, many of Ginny's Healer classmates, most of the Auror Department, many other Ministry employees, everyone from the now-defunct Order and nearly every one of Harry and Ginny's Hogwarts classmates. Leah was talking briefly to Bill and Fleur when a very stout, very old, and very obviously a Weasley woman approached. Leah looked to Bill who tried not to grumble and Fleur who looked utterly terrified. "William," the old woman said in a deep voice that caused Leah's eyebrows to shoot up, "I'm glad to see you've cut off that dreadful dragon's tail you had."

"Yes, thank you, Aunt Margaret."

"And this is your wife, is it not?"

"Yes, you remember Fleur?"

"Is she pregnant or just fat?"

Leah watched as Fleur turned a light shade of pink, "Pregnant, thank you, Aunt Margaret."

The old woman turned her black, beady eyes to Leah and Leah bite the inside of her lip to prevent her from letting out a yelp over the surprise of seeing a giant, brown mole on her right cheek. Leah was a Healer and had seen her share of gross, hideous, surprising moles, bumps, pusses, scabs, etc, but this wasn't a patient. This was a Weasley. "And who are you? You're in the wedding party? With that ridiculous dress?"

Leah cocked an eyebrow and ignored the woman's comment, still trying not to stare at her cheek. "I'm Leah Cooper. Ginny's Healer mentor. I used to work for the twins part time."

"Ah, _two_ jobs," the old woman continued in her very low voice, "does Healing not pay enough or are you _trying_ not to meet a husband?"

Leah was opening her mouth to retort – she didn't care who this woman was related to – when she felt a large hand lightly touch the small of her back. "Ah, Aunt Margaret, I see you've met my girlfriend."

Leah watched as her upper lip raised slightly in obvious disgust, "Ah, Charlie, I see you've finally settled down with a girl who isn't afraid of those retched dragons?"

Charlie grinned, "Considering she treats vampires and werewolves?"

Margaret's face contorted even more, something Leah would have doubted was physically possible. "Yes, well, I need to go find your Aunt Muriel," and she walked off, taking the smell of cats with her.

Leah turned around to face Charlie, completely ignoring Bill and Fleur who speaking rapid (and angry sounding) French. "Don't worry about her – she hates me, Bill and the twins and only likes Ginny because she's marrying the Boy-Who-Lived."

"Charlie, I'm sorry –"

Charlie shook his head, "No, I'm sorry, Leah. I just – I didn't want you to be unhappy because of me."

Leah wrapped her arms around his waist, resting her head against his chest as he wrapped his own arms around her. "Charlie," she said quietly, "whatever I decide to do, I'll be happy." She lifted her head and kissed him deeply (but too briefly for Charlie). "Now come on, let's go congratulate the happy couple, shall we?"

Leah and Charlie were talking with George and Mira when Leah glanced at Fred and Hermione who were sitting at the table already, sitting close, their heads and bodies inclined towards each other, talking intimately. "He's going to ask tonight?" Mira asked George.

"No, not tonight – probably _very_ soon though."

"I give it two weeks tops." Leah grinned.

Charlie laughed, "I say not until after Ron and Lune get married."

"And I say, Luna and Ron go to the Ministry for a quickie after Ginny and Harry get back."

Mira was the only one who refused to bet, saying that Hermione was bound to find out, and bound to be furious, so the three shook hands. "Ten quid?"

"Deal."

They four talked for a few minutes when George said abruptly to Mira, "Let's get a drink, love," and led Mira off. She looked over her shoulder at Leah and Charlie and shrugged, slapping George's shoulder. Charlie turned his head slightly to the left and knew why George had left so suddenly.

"Charles, who is your lovely friend?"

Leah turned to face another relative who was very obviously a Weasley. 'Merlin, does _every_ relative have this ridiculous red hair?' The man was once very tall – he was stooped over slightly and was clutching onto a cane. "Ah, Cousin Les, this is my girlfriend Leah Cooper." Leah bite her lip when Charlie tightened his arm around her waist, drawing her even closer.

"Leah, what a pleasure," he took her hand and kissed it – much longer than was customary. "Please tell me you'll save ol' Cousin Les a dance?"

Leah smiled, "As long as this one doesn't want to dance the whole night."

Charlie smiled and steered Leah away, whispering into her ear, "Cousin Les is what we like to call the Weasley Family Fondler."

Leah nearly burst out laughing. "Well, than good thing you were here to save me, eh?"

Ron clinked his glass to grab everyone's attention and Charlie led Leah to the front table to listen to the Best Man and Maid of Honor speeches. Leah couldn't help but roll her eyes as she watched George and Bill shake hands, probably to bet whether Hermione would cry or not.

--------------

Ginny and Harry ran out of the Burrow laughing as they clutched onto their Portkey to Italy at 2 am; they waved and shouted their thanks to the onslaught of congratulatory shouts, laughs and tears. And it was nearly 3 when Mrs. Weasley finally forced everyone to go home or go to their assigned rooms in the Burrow. Charlie and Leah slowly walked towards the house, laughing at those who were too sloshed to Apparate and had to wait for the Floo.

Charlie stepped in front of her and cupped her cheek with his hand, inching his face closer to hers, "Couldn't we go back to your flat?" He kissed her lips lightly, "This dress looks amazing on you." He drew his hand down her side smiling into her lips as she shivered slightly.

Her eyes still closed she said just as softly, "We promised your mum we'd stay here, remember?" She shivered again as he drew both hands along her bare back, "Charlie," she said warningly, pulling her face back slightly. Charlie however, chuckled softly and finally found her lips again. She pulled away slightly and said against his cheek, "Charlie, how 'bout tomorrow night we'll both wear these outfits again," she traced her fingers along his shoulder. She opened her eyes and leaned her mouth down to his ear, "And we can shag all night long," she said hotly and before he could respond, she was laughing and opening the door of the room she was sharing with Hermione, Mira and Luna.

Charlie growled softly and walked to the room he was staying in. Tomorrow would be a long day.

-----------

Leah opened her eyes and stretched, not knowing what time it was, but knowing she'd never be able to fall back asleep. Grabbing a pair of sweats and her toothbrush, she tip-toed to the bathroom before quietly walking downstairs, surprised to be the first one up. She looked around the kitchen, trying to remember if Mrs. Weasley had mentioned what they were having for breakfast that morning. She found a large pot of oatmeal and put it on the stove. She found some fruit and cut them up, putting them in a bowl to put on the table. She didn't mind cooking, she just never had much time to do it, but it was something she wished to do more someday in the future. And her childhood – she shook her head, refusing to even think about anything to do with her uncle.

She was just putting the kettle on, trying not to think about anything when she heard Mr. Weasley, "Morning, Leah."

She grinned and offered him a cup of tea, "Morning, Mr. Weasley. Where's Mrs. Weasley?"

"Sleeping – poor woman wears herself out with insisting on doing everything."

There was a comfortable silence between the two as they drank their tea before Mr. Weasley continued, "I'm glad Charlie found you, Leah."

Leah opened her mouth in surprise, but he continued, "I know things will be complicated when he has to go back to the Reserve, but you two will work it out –" he laughed to himself, "I've never seen him this happy away from his dragons." He looked at Leah again and she almost shivered, unaware of how unused to this fatherly advice and love she was getting from someone (other than occasionally Tom, of course). "I was more worried that he'd be alone than I was for George – he and Charlie are very similar, as you would know, just like you and Mira are. And don't tell anyone – but Charlie is everyone's favorite –"

Leah nodded and smiled, "I had heard that."

"-And so are _you_, Leah."

Leah didn't get to respond, however, because at that moment Mrs. Weasley bustled in, complaining that Arthur never woke her, but Leah and Mr. Weasley shared a look. He nodded, acknowledging her silent thanks.

After everyone had finished eating, Ron suggested a "friendly" game of Quidditch. Everyone agreed, except for Hermione and Luna. Teams were chosen after everyone had gotten changed and grabbed brooms from the shed. Leah and Mira both ran to try and get Harry's old Firebolt, but Leah settled for Ginny's old Nimbus.

Ron and Bill were Keepers, Fred and George Seekers – after Mrs. Weasley demanded they play without Bludgers, and Charlie, Mira and Leah were Chasers. "You two can be on one team," Charlie shrugged. Leah and Mira laughed as they mounted their brooms.

"If that's how you want to play –"

"Charlie! No!" Fred groaned, "We're going to lose for sure!"

Charlie laughed, "Fred, I think you forget just how good I was." He made to catch the Quaffle, but Leah darted ahead of him, snatching it from his fingertips, "Oh, sorry, love." She laughed and did a quick fake, sending it through the middle hoop as Mira, Ron and George cheered.

Charlie stared at her, his mouth open wide in shock and Leah flew up next to him. "Surprised, love?"

Charlie grinned mischievously, his blue eyes twinkling, "Oh, it's on, love."

Charlie however, was no match for the dynamic duo of Leah and Mira. And the game ended before either twin could even catch the Snitch. It wouldn't have mattered anyway – Charlie's ego was damaged and the girls had already racked enough points that it didn't matter if Fred even caught the Snitch.

----------

It wasn't until after the late lunch that Leah and Charlie were able to sneak out of the Burrow and Apparate to her flat. Charlie drew his hand down her cheek, "You really did look beautiful at the wedding."

Leah smiled lazily at his touch and taking off her coat, asked softly, "Do you want to get married, Charlie?"

His deep blue eyes became serious as he studied her face, "I'm like Mira I think. As long as I get to grow old with the woman I love –"

Leah drew her own finger along his stubble-lined jaw. "Do you want kids?"

Charlie swallowed noticeably, "Do you?"

Leah smiled at his aversion to her question. "Some day, sure. And I know you do too – I see how you still try to parent your siblings."

Charlie leaned in to kiss her cheek, "And I've seen you with the twins – and your patients."

Leah laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Mr. Weasley, I think there was a suit I saw you in the other day that you just looked utterly dashing in."

Charlie laughed and leaned in to kiss her, "Flattery, Ms. Cooper will get you everywhere."

Leah was lightly drawing circles on Charlie's arm, her head pillowed on his chest. She smiled at his sleeping figure, wrapping her arm around his chest and as she settled against his side, whispered, "I want to grow old with you, Charlie."

Charlie chuckled and rubbed his hand down her arm as he kissed the top of her head, "And I want to grow old with you."

----------

Please please please review!! More soon, I promise! I want to get everything that I have written so far typed up and put up! And the next bit is really the start to a next chapter, and would be silly tacked on to this chapter…..anyway, please review!!


	15. XV

A few days later Leah was called into Healer Lang's office; she wasn't nervous. Although Lang was technically her superior, he treated her very much as an equal. But she became worried when she saw a very conservative, elderly wizard in business robes sitting in his office.

"Ah, Healer Cooper, may I introduce you to Mr. Phillip Lewis Alcott, one of St. Mungo's Directors."

Leah nodded to the man who continued to stay seated, perfectly straight, in his chair. She gave Healer Lang a look and sat in an empty chair. "Now, the Directors were reviewing the past year's expenses and they're going to be cutting back in a lot of departments and research," Healer Lang paused, obviously started by Alcott's cough.

"Ms. Cooper," he said stiffly. Leah however interjected just as stiffly and snidely, "I think you mean _Healer_ Cooper, _Mr._ Alcott."

She tried to hide her triumphant smirk as she watched his face sour at the idea of a woman (and a Muggle-born to boot) being a highly qualified Healer. "Yes, well, we've decided to cease fundings on a few of the research boards, including your Muggle one." Leah could do nothing but nod as he continued. "And we are going to cut down on the number of Healers working with _vampires _and _werewolves_."

Leah looked between Healer Lang who looked completely apologetic and obviously upset that there was nothing he could do; Alcott had an unsurprisingly smug look on his face and all she could do was laugh. She laughed disbelievingly at first but her laughter grew until she was all but holding her sides. Mr. Alcott was about to say something, but Leah held up her hand, "Oh, no, Mr. Alcott, I think you've made your point perfectly clear. But I think you need to be enlightened." She leaned back in her chair and smirked, "And _don't_ worry, I'll put all this in writing for you later this afternoon. But consider this my oh," she looked at her Muggle wristwatch, "my two hours notice. You see, Mr. Alcott, I'm not one to brag, but I'm your most qualified Healer. I may be 22, and a female and oh, yes, a _Muggle-born_, but I'm the youngest Head – oh, and did Artie here tell you I was offered Head of Plants as well? – the youngest Head of a Research Board, in the most (and varied) departments, performed the most rare and risky procedures and completed my training in the shortest amount of time by 2 months." She smiled at Alcott's raised eyebrows. "But you know, you and your conservative, Muggle and Squib-hating, cronies who don't believe that other non-wizarding people deserve the same health care, have made it impossible for our society to move forward. In case you had forgotten, Mr. Alcott, we defeated the prejudice bastard who wanted all of those _people_ killed. And so until you and your old, stiff, conservative, Pureblood, brainwashed cronies _die_, I will not be returning to St. Mungo's." She stood up, her eyes blazing, "Because I know that Artie here, and his contemporaries, will welcome me back with open arms," she leaned her face close to Alcott's, catching him off-guard, "And I don't care how incredibly unprofessional I'm being, you threw that privilege out the window long ago, but Merlin, you better _hope_ with whatever you have left of that little black heart of yours, that I don't open my own practice or start working and researching for another hospital." She moved towards the door, "I hope you kick yourself on the way out, after, of course, Artie shows you my extensive resume. I'm thinking of publishing it."

She turned on her heel and said to Healer Lang, "I'll keep in touch, Artie, perhaps we can set up some sort of consulting correspondence? And I suggest Healer Dean take both my office and my position of Head of my now-smaller department. And I presume that all of my positions will be waiting for me when I get back?"

Healer Lang stood and tried not to grin as he gave Leah a hug. "Don't even worry, Healer Cooper, we'll be waiting with open arms."

------------

Leah was nearly done packing up her office when there was a knock on her open door. "No, I'm not changing my mind, I'm leaving," she said exasperated without even turning around.

A deep laugh ensued and a familiar voice said, "I only came to congratulate you." Leah turned, grinning to see Reed leaning against the doorframe. "Word is Alcott was red as a tomato when he finally left. Not sure whether he was angry that you weren't bringing in more revenue or patients, or that they lost such a qualified Healer."

Leah rolled her eyes, "Maybe they'll try to get you to stay on longer."

Reed laughed again, his dark grey eyes twinkling, "I'd like to see them try." There was a comfortable pause as Leah continued to pack the rest of her books into a box when Reed continued, "What will you do?"

She shrugged, "Travel, read, write a book maybe, learn new things, help new people." She shrunk the last of her boxes, "I'll come back eventually. There are still enough resources here for me to get some things accomplished."

"You'll be fine," he opened his arms to give her a friendly hug. Even though it wasn't said aloud, they both knew this would be the last time they'd see each other at least for a few years. "I better a free copy of your book."

Leah smiled, "If I write one, of course, Reed." Reed nodded silently and left Leah to take one last look at her office before she walked out for the last time.

---------

A few minutes later Leah was nervously knocking on the front door of the Burrow. She wasn't worried about resigning, of not having a paycheck, of not having a real, secure job. She knew everyone would be confused and maybe slightly disappointed, but she knew they would support her no matter what she decided to do. But she was nervous that maybe things with Charlie _were_ moving too fast, and maybe this, the decision that he didn't want her to make, would be the determining factor. Would he guilt her into going back? Would he go back to Romania sooner, blaming himself? She bit her lip: she couldn't worry, she shouldn't. Charlie would understand that her department and her board were just like his dragons, and she couldn't let these stiff-shirts take that away from her. He'd understand that she just _couldn't_ stay at St. Mungo's, wouldn't he?

"Oh, Leah, what a wonderful surprise!"

Leah tried to smile, but knew she wasn't going to convince the mother of seven children very easily, "Hi, Mrs. Weasley, sorry, is Charlie here?"

"Yes, yes, dear, in his room."

Leah walked up the stairs slowly, still trying to _not_ think about what Charlie would think. She would just tell him the truth: quick and painless. She knocked on the door hesitantly and tried to smile when he answered the door with just his towel around his waist. "Leah?" His surprise quickly turned into a sly grin, "Missed me so much you left work early?" When she didn't quite meet his eyes or smile, he became worried, "What's wrong?"

"Uh, can I come in?"

Charlie frowned at the aversion to her question. He let her in, rubbing her back to try and comfort her as they sat on his bed. "Charlie, you have to promise _not_ to get mad, _not_ to blame yourself and not try to get me to change my mind. It's what I want."

Charlie took her hands in his, "Are you okay?"

Leah took a deep breath, "I resigned from St. Mungo's," she paused and looked up, blurting everything out quickly, her voice rising as she got angrier. "Charlie, you know I can't go back if those bloody old folk are still there, not allowing the hospital to grow." She looked up, waiting for Charlie's reaction. Her eyes searched his, but she couldn't read his blue eyes.

Charlie nodded, his eyes still not revealing any of his feelings. "You sure this is what you want? This will make you happy?" Leah nodded. To her surprise, Charlie's eyes lit up, twinkling, and he grinned, reaching to his nightstand and handed her a thick envelope.

"What is this?" He walked to his closet to put clothes on.

"Read it."

Leah looked up at him for a few minutes, "They're offering this to you?"

Charlie grinned, "Every few years they have a Keeper or two travel to study, tag and basically chase dragons across the continent, give lectures, and recruit."

Leah raised an eyebrow, "With full pay?"

Charlie laughed and sat next to her, "Trust me, they pay us handsomely enough."

Leah smiled and stared into his deep blue eyes, "You're going to do this?"

Charlie stroked her cheek with the rough pad of his thumb, "You wanted to learn about dragons right?"

"And I'm pretty good at Ancient Runes…" she leaned her cheek into his hand and smiled at him.

He laughed deeply, "Why am I not surprised?" He kissed her lightly, "And we'll be _traveling_. They won't be able to mock us anymore about vacations."

"Or working too hard," she finished.

"And Mum will leave us be since we'll be able to come back here easy enough," he paused and picked up his letter again. "They gave me a list of some areas Muggle, Wizarding and both, where there are relatively cheap places to live." His eyes were twinkling again, "And your flat is _much_ too expensive to keep while we're not here, but we'll still want a place of our own so we don't have to stay with Mum."

Leah cocked an eyebrow and leaned into him again, "Who says I'll want to live with you?"

Charlie growled and attacked her neck, pushing her down on the bed, tickling her stomach lightly making her laugh. But he silenced here with his lips on hers. It was a few minutes before either could think clearly again. She smiled up at him, brushing hair away from his eyes, "All right, all right, I'll live with you."

Charlie grinned and stood up, pulling her with him, "Good, come on, get your coat." He tugged her down the stairs, "Mum! Going for a walk! We'll be back later!"

Leah laughed as Charlie continued to tug her to the Apparation point before he pulled her close to him to Side-Along. His eyes still bright and twinkling, his grin infectious and all Leah could do was hug his waist as she felt the familiar tug and tear as they Apparated. They landed in a flat, dull field right along a dirt lane. "Where are we?" she asked, terribly confused.

Charlie kept his arm around his shoulder as he walked her down the lane, "Why, the city girl can't recognize the countryside?"

Leah was still very confused, "Yes, I see it's the country, but what are we doing here?"

Charlie looked down at her, obviously confused that _she_ was so confused, "Seriously?" She nodded. He cocked his head to the side, "Are you sure you're the most qualified Healer? And are you sure you're street smart?" He laughed as she hit his arm playfully, "Looking for a place to live, foolish girl!"

Leah's mouth opened in shock and understanding, "A country home?" She grinned and pulled his waist closer to hers and looked around at her surroundings, "Do you know where we're going?"

Even though most of the vegetation was mostly dead, Leah still found it beautiful. There were a few trees she couldn't name lining the lane, and she could the forest behind the large, flat fields. She knew one day she'd be able to name all the flowers that would eventually bloom, the trees, and the wildlife she was bound to see. She looked up at Charlie, biting her lip, "You _want _to live in the country, right?"

Charlie's lips curved upwards, "I'm not doing this for you, if that's what you mean." He laughed when she hit his arm again. "Yes, of course I want to live in the country – do I look like a city boy?"

She grinned, "So what do you know about the neighborhood?"

Charlie tried not to blush, "Well, I kinda looked into this house before we talked, because I was planning on taking this job anyway, and was hoping you'd move in with me," he paused and glanced at her face. She was staring at him and grinning but nodded, encouraging him to continue. "So, it's not far from the Burrow, Godric's Hollow and even Shell Cottage, and there are still some available houses in the nearby area if Ron or the twins ever want to move out here. There are some wizarding families, there's a small Muggle 'downtown' a mile up the road, with a pub or two, a Muggle post, general store, that sort of thing." He paused and Leah looked to her left where Charlie was pointing, "And this is the cottage."

It was small, but Leah looked at the land surrounding it, and there was a lot. "Merlin," she breathed, "can we go in?"

Charlie grinned and led her up the narrow dirt path to the cottage, "No one has lived here for a while apparently." Leah could tell he wanted to continue, but she didn't press him. She was too excited, already thinking about what they could to fix up the outside of the cottage. She pointed out the slate roof however, "Merlin, look at that! A slate roof!"

Charlie opened the door, "It's not much, but." Leah didn't let him continue however. She covered her mouth and started laughing. "Merlin, Charlie! This is brilliant! Look at this place!" They were standing in a very open entryway and Leah was admiring the beautiful hardwood floors before Charlie led her into the room on the left where there was a large floor fireplace decorated with beautiful stones that were "from the area" Charlie said. "And it'll be easy enough to connect to the Floo." The room to the right of the entryway was slightly smaller and bare, but Leah loved it anyway and admired the wood beams on the slanted ceiling that were in the other room. The kitchen was off the back and Leah balked at the large bay window behind the large sink that was surrounded by more of the same stone by the fireplace. Charlie pointed out the small wood stove and Leah agreed that they might need _some_ Muggle appliances. There were cabinets, but Leah pointed out the lack of table, but Charlie ignored her, grabbing her hand to lead her upstairs. The stairs were off to the left of the kitchen near a back door. Leah gasped at the size of the second floor: it was as big as the kitchen and the room with the fireplace and was completely open. "All the master bedroom," Charlie grinned. Leah laughed at the small closet and Charlie said it would be easy enough to make it a walk-in. "In fact," he said rather slyly, "it'd be easy enough to expand any part of the house, and I'm pretty good with the paint charms." Leah barely heard him, however since she was admiring the old-fashioned tub and toilet in the bathroom.

She popped her head out, "I _love_ it, Charlie! It's perfect!" Charlie laughed and pointed to the ceiling which had a window where they could see a few trees that were in the backyard. He brought her over to one of the many windows, "And did you see your backyard? You're very own woods to explore."

Leah let out a small laugh, and tried to wipe her eyes before Charlie noticed, "Charlie, this is just perfect, Merlin I don't even know what to say," she laughed again and hugged him fiercely, "I _love you_."

Charlie kissed the top of her head, "That mean you want to go to Gringott's right now?" Leah laughed and took his hand, but he continued seriously. "You don't mind that we'll have to put _some_ work into this house?"

Leah smiled and said just as seriously, "I _love_ that we'll have to."

--------------

As they walked to Gringott's, they discussed what Muggle appliances they would have to buy, and Leah even suggested buying a cheap, Muggle "pick-up truck", which she than had to explain what it was and what it was used for. "What is a 'dryer'?" Leah attempted to explain it, but Charlie could only reply, "Why can't they dry by air, or by magic?" He squeezed her hand playfully, "Did you forget you're a witch?"

Leah rolled her eyes as they reached the front of Gringott's, "Let's just buy the house first, yea?"

Charlie nodded, "So, are we," he hesitated, not really knowing how much money Leah actually made, he wasn't sure if she expected to split the price, or what. "Look, Dragon Keepers make a lot of money, and –"

Leah leaned on his arm as they walked up the front steps, "Charlie, just because I still work at WWW doesn't mean I have to, and trust me, Healers make enough. Want to meet back here, with half?"

Charlie smiled, relieved and kissed her as he followed one of the goblins to his vault.

-------------

It was easy enough for Charlie and Leah to convince Mrs. Weasley to hold a dinner to celebrate Harry and Ginny's return without giving rise to much suspicion. Dinner was a normal affair: no one really noticed how quite or nervous Charlie and Leah were until he cleared his throat just as the clatter of eating utensils finally died down. Leah swallowed noticeably when all eyes were on them, so Charlie began, "Ah, everyone, Leah and I well –"

"I've left St. Mungo's," she blurted out.

There was a moment's pause before Mira started laughing, "No, really, did Charlie knock you up or something?"

Leah looked slightly hurt at her best friend, "No, I've really left." Leah continued when no one said anything. "They're disbanding my Board, shrinking my Department, and the Board are too old and conservative to appreciate any of my services to the hospital or experience. So I told Alcott and his cronies to stick it where the sun don't shine."

Hermione sniffed slightly, "Leah, you didn't honestly tell them that."

"No, I did. I told him I wouldn't return until they all died. And trust me, even though I was a woman and a Muggle-born, he still realized what the hospital lost."

Mira tried to say something, opening her mouth multiple times, only to close it again. George, however, looking from his girlfriend to one of his best friends spoke for her, "So what are you going to be doing?"

Charlie, covering Leah's hand with his on the table said, "Right, well, she'll be traveling with me."

Now it was Bill who laughed, "Where _to_ Romania?"

Charlie looked slightly disappointed with his older brother's response, "No, the Reserve offered my a job to travel around chasing, tagging and studying dragons as well as giving lectures and recruiting."

Arthur spoke up, and Leah was worried that he would be disappointed with _her_ for somehow ruining Charlie's career. "What about Head Keeper?"

Charlie frowned, "Right, well, he decided to stay on, so that's out of the picture."

Hermione seemed almost indignant, "And Leah, you're only going to be traveling along, not working?"

Leah gripped Charlie's leg, gripping his thigh tightly, "No, actually, I'll be writing books, learning new Healing practices, maybe Healing in villages, _reading_," she added with emphasis, "and there's bound to be Ancient Runes I can decipher."

Mira snorted, but Leah noticed a slight smile playing on her best friend's lips. She apparently was more okay with the idea than she originally thought. "Just another subject that she was keen on."

"And she'll be learning about dragons of course too."

Leah looked at Ginny who seemed slightly hurt, "But Lee, you love St. Mungo's! And Charlie! You love the Reserve!"

"Actually, Gin, I love my _dragons_, and Leah loves to heal. But we can do those things together, and well, we'll be around more often."

Mrs. Weasley, who had stayed oddly quietly throughout the conversation now spoke up, "You'll be around more? How?"

Charlie took another deep breath, "Well, okay, before anyone freaks out, since not everyone is convinced we really want these jobs, we both decided on our career changes _before_ we talked to each other. I got the letter while Leah was at St. Mungo's and I didn't say anything until _after_ she told me her dramatic entrance. So after that, we both decided that since everyone is getting married and having babies, and we won't be traveling all the time, we'd need a place to stay."

Mrs. Weasley waved her arms around excitedly, "Well, you'll stay here, of course!"

Charlie continued delicately, "And Leah's flat is much too expensive to keep while we're not around."

Leah nodded and continued for Charlie, "So, we found a small cottage in the country, not far from here, or – or Godric's Hollow or Shell Cottage."

There was another long pause which made Charlie and Leah both extremely uncomfortable.

It was Mrs. Weasley who broke the silence with her happy sobs as she stood up to hug the two, nearly suffocating both. "Oh, dears, this is truly wonderful! Living and traveling together! Oh, when can we see the cottage? How long until you leave? Oh this is wonderful! Wonderful!"

Leah turned to Mira and George who had blank expressions on their faces. She looked to them, pleadingly and Mira said quietly, "And you two are _sure_ –"

"-Absolutely positive –" George continued.

"-Utterly certain," Fred finished, "that this is what you want?"

Leah nodded, "Without a doubt."

Bill coughed and said to Charlie, "Not too fast?"

Charlie shook his head, "This is what we want, Bill."

Mrs. Weasley ignored her children and nearly ran around the kitchen she was so excited. "What's the cottage like?"

Charlie laughed and rolled his eyes at his mother, "Well, we'll need some help cleaning it up since it hasn't been lived in for a while, and once we clean and decorate, you can all come over."

Ginny grinned, "Harry's free tomorrow to help!"

Harry laughed, "I'd be happy to assist!"

Harry and the twins were going to help clean the next day, and Ron promised to bring food during his long lunch break, hoping to see all the land they were going to own.

Once dinner was over however, Leah knew Charlie wouldn't be coming back to her flat. She sighed as they approached the front door and Leah saw Mira, the twins and Hermione waiting for her by the Apparation point. She turned to him and sighed, kissing him lightly on the lips, "Seems I'm going to be harassed for a few hours."

Charlie nodded to Bill who was still sitting in the living room with Fleur, "Me too," he sighed and kissed the top of her head, "how is it that badger us forever, and now, when we're truly happy and changing our lives by not working as much, they think we've gone mental?"

Leah laughed softly, "Apparently people can't change, Char."

Charlie grimaced, "Oh, no, please don't change and start calling me that."

Leah grinned wolfishly, "I'll see you early tomorrow morning?"

Charlie kissed her once more, "Where work clothes." He laughed as he watched her walk outside, her obvious confusion evident on her face.

"Leah," Mira said, "we're going back to my place for a few, make sure you're head's in order."

Leah groaned and looked at Hermione, "Even you?"

Hermione shrugged, "What about our goals?"

Leah didn't get to answer as they chose that moment to Apparate, and George had grabbed her arm at the last second to make sure she didn't go back to her own flat. "We'll still be here for a while, and we can correspond through owl. I'm still going to be corresponding to St. Mungo's."

Mira set her coat on a chair and sat down, "First thing, you _really_ left St. Mungo's."

"Does that mean you're leaving WWW too?" Fred pouted.

"Yes, and yes. Mira, they're giving you my office, and you get to be Head of Squibs, Werewolves and Vampires. Albeit the now smaller size department."

Mira let out a strangled laugh and George beamed, "Congratulations, love!" He grabbed her face and kissed her soundly to Fred's catcalls and Hermione's uncomfortable laughter. Leah grinned, glad the attention was off her, but George pointed at her, "Now, now, little missy. Are you sure this is what you and Charlie want?"

"Aye, are you two doing this so we'll get off your backs about working and finding love?"

Hermione rolled her eyes at her boyfriend, "Fred, they're doing it for themselves first, _than_ each other. Weren't you listening? Charlie wasn't going to get the promotion he wanted because that foul man decided to stay at the Reserve. And than those bloody board members were undermining Leah because she's a female and a Muggle-born! So why _shouldn't_ they leave? And Leah will be doing so many other things! Ancient Runes! Books!"

George smirked, "Romance novels, Leah love?"

"You know, romance novels about a young, strapping Dragon Keeper and a beautiful novelist, isn't such a bad idea…"

Fred stuck out his tongue in defense, "Leah! That's vile! Our brother Charlie is no where near strapping!"

"Yes, I think you meant the romance novel about the witty, brilliant prankster!"

Mira rolled her eyes and ignored her boyfriend, "Leah, you sure this is what you want? This Charlie character won't hurt you?"

Leah smiled at her best friend, "Does it look like he would take that chance?"

Mira got up and hugged her best friend, "Merlin, you two crazy kids in love scared the bloody shit out of me! I was afraid you were moving too fast, and all that jazz."

Leah smiled and hugged her best friend back as she became vaguely aware that the twins were coming dangerously close to joining in on the hug. "I know, Mira, I know, but this is what we want, what we _need_."

Mira let her go, however, before the twins could suffocate them. Fred frowned, "But you two will be living in _sin_!"

Leah rolled her eyes, "Please, I'm sure Mira will be moving in with George soon enough," she winked at Fred who's face paled slightly, but Hermione wasn't paying much attention as she started to doze slightly on one of Mira's comfy chairs.

George turned to Mira, "What do you say? Living in sin?"

Mira shrugged, "With you? Eh…."

George laughed and pushed her playfully as Fred and Leah laughed and Hermione continued to doze. Things were going to be okay and the worst and most terrifying part of her day were finally over.

----------

She tapped her foot and looked at her watch for what felt like the twentieth time and wondered to herself where the twins and Harry could _possibly _be. She rolled her eyes as Charlie's laughet died down only to start up again. She tried again, "And _what_, pray tell, are you _laughing_ at?"

Charlie finally managed to choke something out, "These, _these_," he wiped away tears, "are your _work_ clothes?" He clutched his sides, "Merlin, I knew you were a city girl but," he couldn't finish he was laughing so hard.

Mrs. Weasley walked down the stairs and Leah was gratefully _she_ at least had managed to keep her composure. "Here, dear, these are some of the things Percey used to wear when he was degnoming the yard. I'm afraid Ginny's things are too small and the other boy's things are just too big."

"Thanks, Mrs. Weasley, I really appreciate it."

Mrs. Weasley nodded, "And don't worry, you can keep it until Charlie – or Ginny – helps you buy more, uh, suitable clothing." She pushed her to the bathroom to change and Leah could hear her quietly, yet sternly, reprimanding Charlie.

"But Mum!" she heard him laugh again. Rolling her eyes again, she changed into Percy's baggy jeans and flannel shirt, thankfully that she at least could wear Ginny's old trainers again and not Percy's shoes.

Soon enough the twins and Harry showed up, the twins saluting and Harry rolling his eyes, "We're at your service all day, sirs!" Charlie rolled his eyes and he and Leah led them to the Apparation point to bring them to their new cottage.

The twins let out a low whistle and said simultaneously, "You done well," and "Not bad, Cooper."

Harry turned to Leah grinning, "You two didn't do it enough justice last night at dinner. This is wonderful."

"And you said there are others nearby?" Fred asked, trying to be stealthy as they walked up the path to the front door.

Charlie winked at Leah knowingly, "Yea, and there's a town about a mile away."

Leah was scrubbing the bathroom floor when she stopped and said to Harry, "So married life. All it's cracked up to be?"

Harry pushed his glasses up his nose as he stood up from scrubbing the side of the tub, "Yes, it's wonderful," he smiled knowingly, "you should try it one time."

Leah rolled her eyes, "You know, Potter, no one gives you enough credit. You're just hilarious."

Harry laughed, "So far it's been pretty great. I'm sure it won't always be so easy as it is now, but you know Ginny and I –"

"You two are pretty laidback, yea."

Harry grinned, "I think we'll be okay."

"I'm not too worried for you two, no." Harry went back to scrubbing when Leah said quietly, and in a more serious tone, "And living together?"

Harry looked up, but Leah was already working on cleaning the floor. "Leah, you two will be fine. I know you both pretty well, and well, Charlie's probably one of the more laidback of the Weasley's." Leah looked at him and they shared a knowing smile.

"To say the least."

"And while it might be scary, living together, traveling together, all that, you two will always be friends first, and from what I can tell, you guys will be fine."

Leah shook her head, "Potter, who knew you were so wise?"

Harry shrugged, "You have such little faith in me, Cooper."

Leah was about to retort when Fred shouted up the stairs, "Oi! Where's lunch?"

Charlie was finishing pulling weeds when Leah Apparated back with Ron, paper bags in hand. The twins ran to meet them, yelling "Food!" Leah and Ron rolled their eyes but laughed and continued to talk as the twins went to sit in on the floor of the now clean kitchen. Charlie, wondering what they were talking about, gave them one last glance before walking inside to eat his own sandwich.

"Leah, we don't want to impose, and we'll help clean or decorate, or pay and we'll set up, obviously, but Mum has been going mental, and well, we figure this would be the easiest and quickest way for us to get married and –" Leah smiled slightly as Ron's ears turned the infamous Weasley-red and he rubbed his neck awkwardly.

"Ron, please, that would be wonderful! And don't worry, Charlie and I are going to decorate the house ourselves, so don't even worry. Just let us know when you want to get married."

Ron grinned and gave Leah an unexpected hug. "Oh, this is brilliant, Leah! Thanks! Are you sure Charlie will be okay with this?"

Leah laughed and patted him on his back and led him inside, "Don't worry, he won't mind." She crossed her arms and couldn't help but smile as she watched her boyfriend laughing and eating with his brothers and brother-in-law. She shook her head before she thought too much more about the scene in front of her now and the future scenes that would take place in her – their – kitchen.

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A/N: Thanks for all the reviews!!!!!!


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